KIEV, April 25 (RIA Novosti) – Ukraine’s acting Interior Minister Arsen Avakov announced Friday the special operation in the country’s southeast has not been suspended over the Russian military exercises near the Ukrainian border.
“There has been no suspension of the anti-terrorist operation in connection with the threat of Russian armed forces’ invasion, as many media reports hurried up to say. This information is untrue. The anti-terrorist operation is continuing. Terrorists have to be wary of 24 hours a day. Peaceful citizens have noting to fear,” Avakov wrote on his Facebook page.
Earlier media reports said Ukrainian servicemen stopped the special operation following the announcement of the Russian military drills.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Thursday that Russia will conduct military drills near the border with Ukraine in response to the developing situation in Ukraine’s southeast, where a special operation has targeted the country’s own citizens.
According to Shoigu, over 11,000 troops, 160 tanks, 230 armored vehicles, and some 150 artillery pieces take part in the special operation.
Ukraine's Avakov said the current special operation involves only some of the anti-terrorist center’s resources without using the tanks and other military hardware.
“The anti-terrorist center is open for any peaceful settlement of the situation in the zone of clashes and conflicts, seeking to avoid bloodshed and risks for the civilian population. At the same time, this does not work for the participants of the terrorist groups, involved in the recent tortures and killings, these people will face inevitable punishment,” Avakov wrote.
Ukrainian authorities launched a special operation to crack down on pro-federalization activists in eastern regions of the country that have been swept by rallies since last month.
Reports say up to five civilians were killed or wounded in an army assault on a protester checkpoint in Slaviansk early Thursday.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the use of armed forces against the civilian population by Kiev authorities is a serious crime putting in doubt the legitimacy of the upcoming elections in Ukraine.
Protesters in Kharkiv, Donetsk, Gorlovka, Slaviansk and Kramatorsk refuse to recognize the legitimacy of the current Ukrainian government and are urging interim authorities to hold referendums similar to the one held in Crimea last month, which led to the republic's reunification with Russia.
