MOSCOW, August 04, 21:41 /ITAR-TASS/. The Kiev authorities are no longer concerned with the lives of civilians, Ukrainian troopers or militias, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in its statement on Monday.
"The Kiev authorities instigated by their western sponsors are carrying out a punitive operation killing and wounding civilians and destroying civilian infrastructure. A humanitarian situation in the region is getting worse,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian army continues pulling the “Tochka U”, “Smerch” and Uragan missile complexes to Donetsk.
“All the aforesaid information confirms the need of an immediate ceasefire in Eastern Ukraine and talks to start urgent discussions on the country’s future state structure. Despite Russia’s consistent appeals to Ukrainian authorities and international organizations to take urgent measures in connection with the humanitarian disaster and human suffering in southeast Ukraine, very little is changing in this sphere,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
In this connection, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov wants to call global attention to the desperate situation of population in southeast Ukraine and address special messages to the leaders of several international organizations with an initiative to launch an immediate special humanitarian operation in southeast Ukraine.
The Russian Foreign Ministry gave several examples of how Ukrainian army killed civilians and violated human rights in southeast Ukraine.
“Ukrainian artillery shelled the town of Pervomaisk in the Lugansk region on August 2, destroying homes and causing casualties. The shells also damaged two substations. The city was left out of water and mobile communication. A hospital, a polyclinic and a nursery building were ruined. A gas pipeline was also damaged,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“The same day, on August 2, the Ukrainian military launched mortar fire against a school in Donetsk. As a result, a man and a woman died. All windows in the building were smashed and the school was caught on fire,” the ministry went on to say.
Meanwhile, the militia fighters of the Donbas region and Ukrainian troopers have exchanged their dead and captivated fighters. The militias reported that the bodies of 3 out of 12 dead fighters had traces of torture. Most captives had their bones broken and internal organs damaged.
The Ukrainian army continues using aircraft and heavy weapons against populated localities in Donbas. A local power substation became the target of air strikes in a southern outskirt of Donetsk. Fighting was under way in Donetsk outskirts the whole night. The Ukrainian army actively used howitzers and Grad multiple rocket launchers. The Russian Foreign Ministry recalled that Ukrainian troopers had fired Grad missiles against the town of Gorlovka killing 40 civilians. That fact was confirmed by Human Rights Watch.
On August 3, a Ukrainian army mine went off near the Gukovo border post in the Rostov region where OSCE monitors were working. Luckily, no one was hurt.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said that the Ukrainian authorities were practically sabotaging an investigation into the May 2 tragedy in Odessa.
“Those who are responsible for this tragedy have not been punished. Moreover, they feel very comfortable,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
"Ukrainian law enforcers have been inactive to prevent the recent riots in Odessa where supporters of Ukraine’s European integration, fascist roughnecks from the Right Sector movement and the Svoboda party protested against a concert by a popular Ukrainian singer, Ani Lorak, who had given a concert in Crimea and had received a Russian musical award,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said. Ukrainian authorities continue hunting on journalists who objectively cover the events in Ukraine. On August 1, journalist Alina Emprimyan, a U.S. national who works for RT, was expelled from Ukraine for shooting a report about an anti-mobilization rally in the Trans-Carpathian region (Western Ukraine),” the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
“However, the Kiev authorities do not seem to be concerned with the lives of peaceful civilians, its military and militia fighters. They have introduced a new 1.5% tax on army maintenance,” the Russian Foreign Ministry stressed.