This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/27/world/europe/ukraine-election.html

The article has changed 10 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 7 Version 8
Ukraine Forces Appear to Oust Rebels From Airport in East Ukraine Forces Appear to Oust Rebels From Airport in East
(about 4 hours later)
DONETSK, Ukraine — This city erupted with the din of war on Monday, as the Ukrainian military used fighter jets, helicopters and artillery in what appeared to be a successful attempt to rid the airport of separatist fighters who seized it in the aftermath of national elections that seemed to marginalize them. DONETSK, Ukraine — The new Ukrainian government struck the separatists in this eastern province with a major military offensive on Monday, battling them over an important provincial airport in ground fighting that lasted for hours. The rebels were left scattered and shaken, just one day after a successful national election they had tried to disrupt.
Fighter jets screamed and automatic gunfire popped throughout the afternoon as Ukrainian soldiers fought a ground battle around the airport against the separatists, who have taken over two eastern Ukrainian provinces. The airport battle was the first time the Ukrainian military had moved so aggressively against the separatists, who took over government buildings in two eastern provinces in March, after weeks of low-grade military maneuvers meant to stop their spread to other areas.
As fighting lasted into a rainy evening, the military appeared to have evicted the separatists from the airport, cordoning it off with roadblocks. But the sporadic sounds of weapons fire could still be heard and it was not clear that government soldiers were in full control of the entire area. The airport remained closed, and some local news outlets reported that it was burning. There was no immediate indication that the Ukrainian military’s operations extended any further than the strategically important airport and surrounding area. Experts said that while the military’s attack might have put the separatists on the defensive, it was unlikely to stop their power.
The fighting began shortly after 1 p.m., when gunfire tore through a grassy area in front of the airport near a Toyota dealership, and a man in a blue uniform ran for cover as the fighting cascaded out the airport’s main gate. Thick black smoke dotted the sky. As fighting lasted into a rainy evening, the military claimed to have evicted the separatists from the airport, and had cordoned off the area with roadblocks. But the sporadic sounds of weapons fire could still be heard, and it was not clear that government soldiers were in full control. The airport remained closed, and some local news outlets reported that it was burning.
A spokesman for the military said the operation had been intended to “clear the territory.” “I don’t see this ending anytime soon,” said Oxana Shevel, a political science professor who specializes in Ukraine at Tufts University in Boston. “The Ukrainian government is saying, This is where we draw the line.” Its ability to retake the airport, she said, “doesn’t dramatically change things.”
There was no immediate indication that the Ukrainian offensive extended further than the strategically important airport area. Even so, the routing of the rebels from the airport changed the optics of the situation here in favor of the Ukrainian military, which had suffered setbacks for weeks, and had been seen by many Ukrainians as ineffectual.
The fighting erupted a day after Petro O. Poroshenko, a Ukrainian billionaire, was elected president in a landslide. Mr. Poroshenko has pledged to calm the separatist violence in the east, which, despite Sunday’s election success, still represents a resilient threat to the country’s future stability. Fighter jets screamed and automatic gunfire popped for hours in and around the airport, with ground battles against separatists spilling outside its tall black gate. Thick black smoke dotted the sky and helicopters flew just above the trees, shaking small houses and blowing the grasses in their garden plots.
The military had been conducting an offensive to rid the areas of separatists but had suffered more setbacks than victories. Most residents, who want Ukraine to remain whole, have expressed disdain over the military’s ineffectiveness. The rebel seizure of the airport early Monday suggested a new escalation by the militants who in recent days have appeared to lose the political support of the Kremlin, at least publicly. On Friday, President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia suggested that he would respect the results of Sunday’s election, in which Petro O. Poroshenko, a Ukrainian billionaire who knows Mr. Putin, was elected in a landslide. Many here say separatist leaders had grown confident after months of swaggering across the provinces with virtually no pushback from central authorities.
The seizure of the airport suggested a new, perhaps desperate, escalation by the militants who in recent days have appeared to lose the political support of the Kremlin, which indicated that it would respect the results of Sunday’s election. The fractious groups are not directly under Mr. Putin’s control, and the Kremlin has denied that its military is involved in the conflict here. But support can come in many forms, and it is far from clear that Mr. Putin has any intention of giving up what appears to be a useful geopolitical lever: violence and instability in Ukraine’s east that has left the West flustered.
The militants are unlikely to survive long without the backing of Russia. But support can come in many ways, and it is far from clear that President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia intends to give up what appears to be a useful geopolitical lever: violence and instability in Ukraine’s east that has left the West flustered. “What Putin wants is for Ukraine to be weak,” said Lucan A. Way, a political scientist at the University of Toronto who specializes in Ukraine and has lived in Donetsk. “Just because he gives verbal support for the new Ukrainian government does not mean that he will stop trying to foment unrest in the east.”
“What Putin wants is for Ukraine to be weak,” said Lucan A. Way, a political scientist at the University of Toronto, who specializes in Ukraine and has lived in Donetsk. “Just because he gives verbal support for the new Ukrainian government does not mean that he will stop trying to foment unrest in the east.” By issuing statements of support, Mr. Putin “gets to look like a statesman,” and blame whatever problems emerge on the new government, Professor Way said. “He has created a Frankenstein that he cannot control, and may not even want to,” he said.
In the current situation, Mr. Putin “gets to look like a statesman,” and blame the new government for whatever problems emerge. At the same time, Mr. Putin does not directly control events on the ground. “He has created a Frankenstein that he cannot control, and may not even want to,” Mr. Way said. Many in Ukraine had feared that Mr. Putin sought the eastern regions themselves, and was putting troops in position to potentially seize them in the same way he did Crimea, the southern peninsula on the Black Sea that Russia annexed two months ago, setting off a major international confrontation.
Still, rebels seemed shaken by their isolation. At the Donetsk government headquarters that they have occupied and fortified with barbed wire and old tires, nervous separatists briefed journalists. But a subtler maneuver is now emerging, and many experts believe that the most desirable result for Mr. Putin would be for the troubled areas to devolve into breakaway status, similar to South Ossetia within Georgia and Transnistria within Moldova, a possibility that ordinary citizens are already talking about.
Denis Pushilin, the speaker of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, said that the rebel troops posted on Sunday night to guard the building against attack had been fired upon by government forces. “It’s a mess, it’s anarchy,” said Yevgeny Kaplenko, a retired welder, who stood near his small brick house and yard planted with roses near the airport, as gunfire popped. “This is going to be a second Transnistria. That’s what awaits us.”
“We must defend ourselves,” Mr. Pushilin said. “This is an important attack against a strategically important building.” That outcome would be considered poisonous by many Ukrainians, and would likely have far more serious repercussions for the world, given Ukraine’s enormous size, severe economic problems and geopolitically strategic location in the heart of Europe.
He said he did not expect an immediate attack on the headquarters, but called on Mr. Putin directly for help. “Putin doesn’t want to take these regions and foot the bill for all these old industries,” Professor Shevel said. “He would rather there be instability, which makes Ukraine less attractive to Europe and makes it easier to extract concessions from the government.”
“I am forced to appeal directly to Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin for any possible aid,” he said. When asked what kind of aid – military or economic — he said, “Any.” The day’s events started shortly after 3 a.m., when dozens of armed men from the Donetsk People’s Republic showed up at the airport and demanded that all Ukrainian military and security personnel leave, the airport’s press service said. The Ukrainian military later issued an ultimatum for the men to leave and began to attack, shortly after 1 p.m., when they defied the eviction order. A military spokesman said the operation included fighter jets as well as several helicopters, which transported Ukrainian soldiers.
Shortly before the airport fighting began, a female passenger carrying a single suitcase tried to cross the police checkpoint to go into the terminal, but turned away and left the area. Pro-Russia militiamen took up positions behind trees close to the entrance, near a Metro supermarket. One of them, shot in the leg, was evacuated in a new Audi, its license plate obscured with tape. Fighters fired a rocket toward the airport, then retreated, under sniper fire, to an area where a friendly resident agreed to drive some of them in his blue car.
Soon after, three army helicopters flew low from the main road to the west side of the airport. Then, the shooting began. During the firefight, the separatists got reinforcements: a brown minivan arrived with six heavily armed men carrying two rockets and rifles, and others in civilian clothes. The rebels seemed shaken by the forcefulness of the military response. At the Donetsk government headquarters, nervous separatists briefed journalists.
More than three and a half hours later, gunfire continued to crackle. Schools were closed and stores were shut with metal gates. Eduard, a taxi driver who had been waiting outside the airport entrance, said that the Metro supermarket nearby had asked all the shoppers to leave, and that he saw a stream of people leaving the store. “I am forced to appeal directly to Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin for any possible aid,” said Denis Pushilin, the speaker of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic. When asked what kind of aid — military or economic — he said, “any.”
“We heard this ‘oooooooo boom,’ like a bomb falling from a large height,” said Sergei Tansura, an electrician at the airport still in his blue work overalls. Late Monday night, a Ukrainian military spokesman, Alexei Dmitrashkovsky, said by telephone that the army had established full control over the airport and that several of the militant leaders had requested safe passage, including one known by the nickname, Abver, described as a Russian passport holder. That claim could not be corroborated.
In the Kievsky neighborhood in the northern part of Donetsk, the boom of artillery startled pedestrians, unsure of the source of the shelling. A small gathering of neighbors on Krupskaya Street, a few minutes’ drive from the airport entrance, were discussing the events as fighter jets made a loud scraping sound over the small brick houses and lush yards planted with roses. After midnight, Kalinin Hospital’s deputy head doctor, Andrey Sokoleyvich, said the facility had received five people with shrapnel and bullet wounds. Late Monday evening, a social media account run by the rebels issued a call for doctors to come urgently to several city hospitals.
“It’s a mess, it’s anarchy,” said Yevgeny Kaplenko, a retired welder. “This is going to be a second Transnistria,” he said, referring to the breakaway area within Moldova, on Ukraine’s southwestern border. “That’s what awaits us.” At the city’s main trauma hospital, a woman wearing a flak jacket with a medical cross and carrying a holstered pistol said curtly that the wounded, who she claimed numbered fewer than 10, had been taken to other hospitals.
Mr. Poroshenko’s election by a wide margin sent a clear message that Ukraine was prepared to move forward as a united, if besieged, country, with no indication of military action by Russia, or any prospect of secession and annexation as occurred with Crimea. Militants prevented voting throughout much of the east on Sunday, prompting accusations from some observers, including a United States senator, Kelly Ayotte, Republican of New Hampshire, that Russia had failed to honor a demand that it not interfere with the balloting. Earlier, as evening fell, a crowd of rebel sympathizers gathered outside the occupied government headquarters and some demanded that weapons be given to ordinary citizens, reflecting a growing siege mentality. Yaroslav Krakov, 33, said that every time he went to the rebels to demand a gun he was told none were left.
In Moscow, Sergey V. Lavrov, the foreign minister, said that Russia saw the vote in Ukraine as a positive step, albeit with problems. “We have no one else,” he said. “Russia does not need us, that much is obvious. We are nothing to Kiev anymore. We only have Pushilin and ourselves.”
“The fact that the elections were organized in most of the regions in Ukraine is generally positive,” Mr. Lavrov said at a news conference, echoing remarks by Mr. Putin that Russia would respect the outcome.
The new government needs to engage all citizens, Mr. Lavrov said, negotiating compromises to address the interests of all political forces, all ethnic groups and all faiths. “There will be little result without this,” Mr. Lavrov said, adding that continuing military operations in the southeast would be “a huge mistake.”
He also endorsed Mr. Poroshenko’s plan to make his first visit to the heavily industrialized Donbass region where Russia is widely spoken, saying that Kiev needed to establish a dialogue with all the regions.
Mr. Lavrov welcomed Mr. Poroshenko’s statements, saying that he was eager to engage with Moscow, but he rejected the idea that the United States and Europe needed to be involved. “We don’t need intermediaries,” Mr. Lavrov said.
Ukraine’s deposed president, Viktor F. Yanukovych, issued a statement from his Russian exile saying that the new government in Kiev should withdraw all government troops from southeastern Ukraine to end the standoff and restore peace.
Mr. Yanukovych, who established himself in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don after he was forced from office by the uprising in Ukraine in February, said that he respected the election of Mr. Poroshenko, a former ally, as legitimate.
“An early presidential election has taken place in Ukraine,” Mr. Yanukovych’s statement said. “No matter what region has had what turnout and what choice has been made, I respect the choice made during such a difficult time for our motherland.”
Mr. Yanukovych said the main priority of the government should be “to stop the bloody war against their own people,” adding that “for the legitimacy of the elections and the legitimacy of the president himself, the engagement of the southeast of our country is essential.”