MOSCOW, January 12. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday he hopes that the EU advisory mission for civilian security sector reform in Ukraine (EUAM Ukraine) will decide on the status of the country’s volunteer battalions and the Right Sector formations.
“It is yet unclear what status the so-called oligarchic battalions have and to whom they are subordinated,” Lavrov said after talks with his Latvian counterpart Edgars Rinkevics.
The illegal armed formations like the Right Sector, which refuse to be at anyone’s command, are also active in the conflict. The far-right group has refused to obey the orders of Ukraine’s Defence Ministry.
Russia expects that the EU mission, which started its work on December 1, will help deal with these well-armed people who control a significant part of the Ukrainian territory and are suspected of being linked to serious crimes.”
The crimes include execution-style killings of civilians whose bodies were discovered in mass graves near Donetsk in September. This area was earlier controlled by Ukrainian security forces and the notorious Aidar battalion.
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