25.02.2022, Donetsk.
Ukrainian nationalists in Donbass still refuse to surrender, in contrast to ordinary Ukrainian army servicemen who lay down their arms, said the leader of the DPR Denis Pushilin on February 25 on the Russia 24 channel.
“A number of military servicemen, I mean not nationalists but servicemen, understand that they have no reason not to save their lives and return to their families, and they surrender and lay down their arms,” Pushilin noted.
In the early hours of February 24 Putin announced the beginning of a special military operation to defend the people of Donbass and ensure peace enforcement of Ukraine.
According to Pushilin, the Kiev regime bears full responsibility for the bloodshed. Putin urged Ukrainian servicemen not to fulfill criminal orders of the nationalist-oriented Ukrainian authorities, to lay down their arms, and to go home.
The Ukrainian servicemen have been invited to continue service in the Russian army.
One week earlier, the situation in Donbass rapidly escalated. The Ukrainian army has been making regular massive shelling of the positions of the People’s Militia as well as towns and villages along the entire frontline. The Ukrainian army deployed heavy equipment and artillery to the contact line.
Several sabotage attacks and assassination attempts against commanders of the People’s Militia took place in the DPR and the LPR. In Lugansk, 2/3 of the people were left without gas supply after a gas pipeline was blown up. The Ukrainian army deliberately target civilian infrastructure. In particular, in Lugansk, water supply was cut after pipelines at a filtering station were damaged.
On February 18, the DPR and the LPR announced the beginning of evacuation of civilians to Rostov region because of a real risk of a major military aggression by Kiev. Women, children, and elderly people were first to evacuate.
At the same time, the Western leaders accused Russia of shelling the territory of Donbass in order to blame it on the Ukrainian army, and then they said that Russia was fabricating an excuse to start a war.
In this context, on February 21, President of Russia Vladimir Putin signed a decree to recognize the DPR and the LPR upon a request from the leaders of the republics. This decision faced a wave of indignation in the West.
However, since early November the West accused Russia of alleged preparation of invasion of Ukraine. The information campaign began with a series of articles in major Western outlets followed by statements by US and NATO top officials.
At the same time, talks on mutual security guarantees between Russia, the US, and NATO came to a standstill. According to the Russian diplomats, this blocked negotiations on other global strategic security issues.
Source: Rossa Primavera News Agency
