The New Worker
The Weekly paper of the New Communist Party of Britain
Week commencing 25th April 2014
Tension is rising in Ukraine as the puppet regime orders its troops to resume operations against the anti-fascist movements that have taken control of large parts of the south and east of the country. Last week’s peace agreement is in tatters and Russia has warned that any attack on Russian citizens would be an attack on the Russian Federation. The Russians say the Kiev authorities must “immediately” deescalate the situation in southeast Ukraine by withdrawing its troops from the region, start nationwide talks and stop “distorting” the Geneva agreement.
The four-sided talks between the European Union, the Americans, Russia and Ukraine took place in Geneva last week after the first attempt to suppress the mass revolt collapsed, when troops sent to the east refused to fight and some went over to the anti-fascist side. The deal specified that “buildings illegally seized” must be vacated and “groups illegally armed” must disarm. But the neo-nazis camped out in Maidan Square in Kiev did not make one move to turn in their arms or go home, nor did the puppet regime do anything to enforce the agreement in the capital.
The Kremlin clearly believes they’ve been double- crossed by the Americans who launched a new hate campaign against the “people’s governments” largely ethnic Russian southern and eastern provinces immediately after the deal was struck.
US foreign minister John Kerry produced a fake document purporting to show that the People’s Republic of Donetsk had ordered all Jews to register with the authorities while the American media circulated images of armed men identified as Russian special forces operating inside Ukraine.
Meanwhile in Slavyansk three members of the local militia manning a checkpoint were gunned down by a fascist gang and the bodies of two local pro-Kiev politicians have been found dumped in a nearby river — victims, the puppet regime claims, of a Russian intelligence unit operating in the area.
In Moscow Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov accused Kiev’s coup-appointed government of going back on its pledge to put a stop to all violence.
Lavrov called acting Ukrainian “president” Alexander Turchinov’s order to reinitiate an “anti-terror operation” in East Ukraine, a criminal act.
“In Geneva we agreed there must be an end of all violence. Next afternoon Turchinov declared almost a state of emergency and ordered the army to shoot at the people.”
Lavrov said the buildup of Russian troops on the border with Ukraine was within the bounds of international law and he denied the presence of Russian troops in East Ukraine. Lavrov said the troops were participating in routine military drills, something that has been verified by international inspectors.
Describing a worst case scenario in the Ukrainian crisis, Lavrov said Russia would be forced to respond if it were attacked. “If we are attacked, we would certainly respond.
If our interests, our legitimate interests, the interests of Russians have been attacked directly, as they were in South Ossetia for example, I do not see any other way but to respond in accordance with international law,” he said. “Russian citizens being attacked is an attack against the Russian Federation.”