On April 12, 2014 the Ukrainian military first clashed with the people of Slavyansk, a small city eastern part of Ukraine (population around 120 thousand).
Slavyansk was founded in 1696 by Don Cossacks upon the order of Tsar Alexey to defend Russia from raids of Crimean Tatars. The local people extracted salt from nearby lakes. Then the extraction was stopped and the city was used as a place for restoring health of military wounded in battle to become a resort city afterwards. After the revolution the lands populated by Don Cossacks became part of Ukraine but the population remained Russian and continued to speak Russian language.
In 2013 Shell made known its plans to start extraction of shale gas here in violation of ecologic norms. The contract envisioned taking property away from owners in case it stood in the way of cleaning the space for drilling. Slavyansk is where the first wells are to appear according to the plans. The area of shale gas extraction includes the neighboring Kramatorsk (population 160 thousand), the cities of Krasnyi Luch and Svyatogorsk in the Donetsk region and Balakleya and Izuim of the Kharkov region. It’s not an occasion that Slavyansk and Kramatorsk have become the areas of the fiercest battles between the regular military and insurgents while the city of Izium serves as the main springboard for launching operations against Russians and Russian speakers in the south-east of Ukraine.
The regular forces are supported by irregular formations of Neo-Nazi organization Pravy Sector, private units created for punitive actions by Ukrainian tycoon Igor Kolomoisky and mercenaries hired by US private military company Greystone. The choice of area for waging combat actions is a proof that the Kiev regime serves the business interests of Shell… The pro-Kiev forces use combat helicopters, armor, 122-mm howitzers, multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) Grad able to cover 14, 5 hectares in a salvo turning it into scorched land. Since early May the army regularly uses mortars. The snipers’ fire also adds to the death toll, including civilians. Ilya K., a 12 year old boy, was killed by sniper on May 9 – the Victory Day marking the defeat of Germany in WWII.
The methods used, including non-conventional warfare, are classified as war crimes. For instance, the regular forces tried to break through a block post using an ambulance for the purpose.
The use of helicopters with UN symbols is the most cynical crime committed by Kiev regime. It resulted in the death toll measured by many dozens; many civilians were wounded, including the ones assaulted near the town of Oktyabrskaya, 20 km from Kramatorsk.
A LifeNews TV team was shot at. Ukrainian crews refused to operate helicopters with UN symbols. The Kiev regime used Polish mercenaries instead. The rotary wing aircraft delivered strikes after a failed attempt of Grad ammunition loaded trucks to get through people’s self-defense forces ground positions. The projectiles were badly needed by government forces holding a nearby height – a position crucial for control of the area. No one can use UN symbols operating on its own without United Nations authorization. The Kiev government spurns international norms and the United Nations. Its actions endanger the lives of international observers in Ukraine. Now the local people believe that UN symbols are used to kill civilians instead of peacemaking missions.
The UN Peacekeeping Operations Department is informed about the Kiev staged provocation, neither the United States, nor the European Union, nor the Secretary General has condemned the regime for non-conventional warfare. By using UN symbols Turchinov and Yatsenyuk have made the international organization the crime accomplice.
