Ukraine War Update - 14 June 2015

Sunday, June 14, 2015  8:28 AM PDT

Ukraine ready to send relief aid to Georgia's flood-hit capital

   (UNIAN) --- Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk has expressed condolences to his Georgian counterpart Irakli Garibashvili and the Georgian people in connection with the deadly floods that hit Georgia's capital Tbilisi in the early hours of June 14.

   Speaking over the phone with Garibashvili, Yatsenyuk said that the Ukrainian government was ready to send relief aid to Georgia if needed.

   "The parties agreed that the two countries' services concerned will remain in contact regarding the delivery of humanitarian aid to the food-hit areas of Georgia in case of need," the Ukrainian premier's press service reported.

   At least 12 people are reported to have died and a number of others were missing in flood-hit Tbilisi.

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The floods also destroyed enclosures at the Tbilisi Zoo, letting animals including lions and tigers, hippopotamuses, crocodiles and bears, roaming the city. Some of the animals that escaped were captured or killed, and the search for those still on the loose continued on Sunday.

Sunday, June 14, 2015  6:07 AM PDT

Terrorists shelled Zolote and Marinka checkpoints

   (Censor.NET) --- The situation in the ATO area remains tense as Russian mercenaries continue to violate the cease-fire.

   Censor.NET reports citing the State Border Service.
   The militants fired at Zolote checkpoint, guarded by border guards together with APU soldiers, three times over the past 24 hours. The terrorists fired from grenade launchers and small arms. Ukrainian soldiers rebuffed the attack. There are no victims reported among Ukrainian servicemen.
   In addition, the militants mortared Marinka checkpoint.
   The terrorists continue to use UAVs for aerial reconnaissance. A total of 19 drones were reported in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

Sunday, June 14, 2015  4:53 AM PDT

Several terrorists' mortar shells hit five-storey apartment building in Triokhizbenka

   (Censor.NET) --- The terrorists shelled Triokhizbenka village (Luhansk region) today, June 14, around 9 a.m.

   Censor.NET reports citing head of the Luhansk Regional State Administration Hennadii Moskal's official website.
   Several terrorists' mortar shells hit a five-storey apartment building and the TB dispensary. The administrative building of the dispensary caught fire.
   According to preliminary data, no one suffered among the civilians and the servicemen, though the apartment building was densely inhabited.
   Details of the shelling are being specified.

Sunday, June 14, 2015  3:51 AM PDT

Terrorists shelled Troitske village from Grads and self-propelled guns

   (Censor.NET) --- Yesterday, June13, the terrorists shelled Troitske village (Popasna town district) from Grads and self-propelled gun mounts.

   Censor.NET reports citing head of the Luhansk Regional State Administration Hennadii Moskal's official website.
   Russian-terrorist UAE was spotted over the village. After that the terrorists fired at Troitske from Pervomaisk town. The civilians were forced to hide in basements and cellars as shelling continued all night long.
   According to preliminary data, no one suffered among the civilians. However, there were losses among the military. A body of a soldier who tripped a mine was found in the forest near the village. He was 37 years old.
   Besides, hostilities continued in Shchastia town, as well as in Krymske, Katerynivka, and Rodyna villages. The latter two villages were shelled till 5 a.m. Several houses were damaged in Katerynivka. According to preliminary data, there were no killed or wounded. Power supply line was damaged in Katerynivka.

Sunday, June 14, 2015  3:14 AM PDT

Majority of Ukrainian ready to trade in rebel-held territories in Donbas for peace, survey shows

   (Zik) --- The May survey done by the Kiev-based Sofia Center for Social Research indicated that 61.8% of Ukrainians approve of giving up the rebel-held territories in Donbas in exchange for stopping the war.

   22.9% of Ukrainians believe the war should be continued to regain control over entire Donbas. 

   15% of respondent were undecided.

Sunday, June 14, 2015  3:05 AM PDT

One Ukrainian soldier killed, 21 wounded on June 13

   (Censor.NET) --- One Ukrainian soldier was killed, 21 were wounded in the course of the anti-terrorist operation over the past 24 hours.

   This was announced by the Presidential Administration representative on ATO matters, Colonel Oleksandr Motuzianyk at a briefing, Censor.NET reports.

   He gave no details on where and when the soldiers were wounded and killed.

Sunday, June 14, 2015  2:56 AM PDT

Anti-Ukrainian provocation in USA was bankrolled by S. Liovochkin

   (Zik) --- Ex-Regions heavyweight member Serhy Liovochkin was behind the anti-Ukrainian provocation in the United States aimed at declaring the ‘Azov’ volunteer battalion a neo-Nazi unit and banning to give Ukraine mobile AA missiles, Ihor Mosijchuk, a Radical party lawmaker, writes in Facebook June 14, citing his own investigation.

   “The links to US Congress adopting a ban to provide instructors for ‘Azov’ servicemen and supply mobile AA Stinger missiles lead to Kiev,” he writes.

   The lobbying was done, under contract with Liovochkin, by US spin doctor Paul Mannafort whose services had been used by ex-president Yanukovych, Mosijchuk says.

   The ban was initiated in the Congress by Congressman John Conniers

Sunday, June 14, 2015  2:33 AM PDT

Oil depot near Kiev is still on fire

   (Censor.NET) --- As if 8 a.m. (June 14), a 900-cubic-meters container has started burning again near Vasylkiv town.

   This was announced by the State Emergency Service's press service, Censor.NET reports.

   According to the report, the fuel is being transferred from two BRSM 900-cubic-meters containers to proportionate KLO containers.1000-cubic-meters of fuel has been already transferred at the moment.

   Firefighters are working on the scene at the moment. 186 people and 40 vehicles are involved in fire-fighting. 70 National Guard soldiers is securing the place.

Sunday, June 14, 2015  1:23 AM PDT

Terrorists’ tanks fired at civilians in Vodiane and Opytne villages

   (Censor.NET) --- Yesterday, the militants fired at the Army’s positions in the ATO zone for about 109 times.

   This is a record number of the terrorists' attacks over the last few months, Censor.NET reports citing the ATO press center.

   According to a report, the terrorists were quite active in the Luhansk region. Novotoshkivka village was shelled with Grad rocket systems, while Zolote with 120-mm mortars.
   Donetsk remains the hottest spot in the ATO zone. The militants fired from banned weapons at Butovka mine, the villages of Opytne, Starohnativka, Marinka and Taramchuk. Besides, civilians of Vodiane and Opytne villages were shelled with militants' tanks.
   Novoselivka Druha village near ​​Mariupol was shelled with 82-mm mortars.
   16 terrorists' attacks were recorded after the midnight. In the Artemivsk sector, the militants shelled Krymske, Kirove, Leninske with 120-mm mortars. The village of Luhanske was fired from small arms, mortars, rocket-propelled grenades.

Valentin does not rule out returning to Russia, but "not
under the current regime," and not before "everything
is in order in Ukraine."

Saturday, June 13, 2015  19:16 PDT

From Siberia To Mariupol: Teen Flees Russia, Fights Against Separatists In Ukraine

   (RFE/RL) --- A teenager from a Moscow suburb has alienated his family and schoolmates and attracted the attention of the police for his criticism of Russia's aggression against Ukraine. "You are my enemy," his own grandfather told him.

   Back in Siberia, Valentin knew plenty of people who protested against Russia's involvement in the conflict in Ukraine, and a few who hung flags and posters around his home city of Krasnoyarsk.

   The 19-year-old took his views about the war a step further: He's fighting in it, on the Ukrainian side.

   Under pressure from the authorities over his activism, Valentin fled to Ukraine in January and joined the controversial Azov Battalion, a volunteer militia that has played a prominent role in the fighting against Russian-backed rebels in the Donbas.

   "When I came here, I had two choices: to live in Ukraine as a refugee or go to the war," he told RFE/RL's Russian Service.

   The latter was an "obvious choice," he said by telephone from Mariupol, a strategic Ukranian port city that lies west of the front line in the Donetsk region. It is coveted by the rebels and seen as a key potential target should they attempt a major new offensive, despite a shaky cease-fire in place since February.

   In a second telephone interview with RFE/RL, on June 12, Valentin said he has taken part in several military operations against the separatists near Shyrokyne -- a scene of fierce fighting east of Mariupol -- and Hranitne. Both towns are at the edge of rebel-held territory.

   The conflict in eastern Ukraine has killed more than 6,400 people since April 2014.

   Most Russians who have fought in it have done so on the side of the separatists. President Vladimir Putin denies Moscow has sent troops into Ukraine, despite mounting evidence, such as fresh soldiers' graves in Russian towns, and claims any Russians fighting in the war are there of their own volition. 

Valentin's journey to Ukraine started slowly and culminated quickly.

   Last year, he took part in antiwar rallies in Krasnoyarsk, one of the sites of demonstrations held around Russia to protest the conflict and Russia's involvement. 

   Many protesters were people who rejected the Kremlin's narrative about the crisis and conflict in Ukraine, believing that Russia has both provoked and participated in the fighting.
    "There were many people who supported Ukraine, but for most it was only passive support," said Valentin, who did not stop at attending rallies.

   "Me and my friends would hang Ukrainian flags and posters around the city," he said. "The photos of an anti-Putin banner we placed on a bridge in central Krasnoyarsk became very popular on the Internet."

   Valentin has put his dream of becoming a history teacher on hold.

   In January of this year, Valentin discovered that his actions had caught the attention of the regional security services when he got a phone call from an antiextremism officer.

   "He told me, 'Valentin, come to our office. We need to talk. It's very serious,'" he said. "When we met, the first thing [the officer] told me was: 'We know it was you.'"
   Valentin said the authorities accused him not only of hanging the banner on the bridge but also over an incident in which a World War II monument was vandalized.
   After two days, the same officer called again and asked him to "come to the office to sign a few papers."
   He suspected that he might be asked to sign a statement promising not to leave the city, a sign of potential criminal charges.

   At that point, Valentin said, he realized that he did not want "to be kept as a hostage in Russia."
   Three hours later, he was on his way to the airport, leaving behind his mother, his studies, and his native country.

   "After the second call...I quickly gathered my money and my things, said, 'Bye, Mom,' and left," Valentin said.

   A day after arriving in Kiev, he showed up at the Azov Battalion's "training base," he said.

   Valentin vocally defended the Azov Battalion, whose reputation for prowess in battle has been clouded by the far-right, even neo-Nazi, views of many members.

   The symbol it has used bears a resemblance to the Wolfsangel that was used in Nazi Germany and has been associated with neo-Nazi groups around the world.

   On June 10, the U.S. House of Representatives approved amendments to a military spending bill that one of the amendments' backers, Democratic Congressman John Conyers, said was meant to ensure the U.S. military "does not train members of the repulsive neo-Nazi Azov Battalion."

   Like many volunteer brigades that were formed in 2014 to fight the rebels, Azov is now part of the National Guard and is under the aegis of the Interior Ministry -- a change that reflects concerns about control over the units.

   Asked about descriptions of the Azov Battalion as neo-Nazi or ultranationalist, Valentin said they sound "ridiculous."

   "I am a Siberian man with Russian and Belarusian roots," he told RFE/RL. "There are representatives of various ethnic groups in our battalion: Georgians, Belarusians, Russians, and others. Those who label us as neo-Nazis or Ukrainian ultranationalists just help Russia's propaganda against Ukraine."

   Valentin has put his dream of becoming a history teacher on hold -- a decision that dovetails with his concerns about the prevalence of propaganda in the Russian educational system.

   "In Russia, education -- especially history teaching -- is too closely tied to the state ideology," he said. "It tries to teach the young generation that Russia has always been right."
   Valentin asked RFE/RL not to publish his surname, saying he fears that the Federal Security Service (FSB) might put pressure on his family and friends back home.

   He does not rule out returning to Russia someday, he said -- but "not under the current regime," and not before "everything is in order in Ukraine."
   Valentin said he would return if "the tsar falls" or a "revolution starts in Russia."

   But he does not place all the blame for what is happening in Russia and Ukraine on Putin.
   "We all know very well that the problem is not Putin. We have ourselves to blame for allowing his regime to get established and strengthen," he said.