Donetsk fearful of Russian military might on Ukraine’s border
By Kathy Lally, WashPost, Published: March 29
DONETSK, Ukraine — Some people are making sure their cars stay gassed up, in case their families need to flee advancing tanks. Others are stockpiling food so they can dig in if there is an invasion. A few talk about learning to shoot. Nearly everyone is worried.
Tens of thousands of Russian soldiers are massed along the Ukrainian border, U.S. officials report, with large contingents gathered near the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine. Russian officials say the troops are conducting routine exercises. On Saturday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow has no intention of using them against Ukraine.
But ever since Russian President Vladimir Putin annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula after a hastily arranged referendum March 16, few here know what to believe. This is a Russian-speaking region that has long been well disposed toward its neighbor. Some small but vocal groups, fearing that they will get short shrift from Kiev, have demonstrated against the Ukrainian government. There have been demands for a referendum on joining Russia. But no one is asking for war.
“I worry about it all the time,” said Anatoly Akimochkin, first vice chairman of the Independent Trade Union of Miners of Ukraine. “Any kind of intervention will mean war, and the border is not far away. Some are ready to take up arms and defend their state. And there are some who would welcome Russian troops.”
(More here.)
DONETSK, Ukraine — Some people are making sure their cars stay gassed up, in case their families need to flee advancing tanks. Others are stockpiling food so they can dig in if there is an invasion. A few talk about learning to shoot. Nearly everyone is worried.
Tens of thousands of Russian soldiers are massed along the Ukrainian border, U.S. officials report, with large contingents gathered near the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine. Russian officials say the troops are conducting routine exercises. On Saturday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow has no intention of using them against Ukraine.
But ever since Russian President Vladimir Putin annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula after a hastily arranged referendum March 16, few here know what to believe. This is a Russian-speaking region that has long been well disposed toward its neighbor. Some small but vocal groups, fearing that they will get short shrift from Kiev, have demonstrated against the Ukrainian government. There have been demands for a referendum on joining Russia. But no one is asking for war.
“I worry about it all the time,” said Anatoly Akimochkin, first vice chairman of the Independent Trade Union of Miners of Ukraine. “Any kind of intervention will mean war, and the border is not far away. Some are ready to take up arms and defend their state. And there are some who would welcome Russian troops.”
(More here.)
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