The Briefing Room
General Category => World News => Topic started by: flowers on March 17, 2014, 06:30:29 pm
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http://www.kyivpost.com/content/ukraine/ukranian-government-refuses-to-remove-troops-from-crimea-prepares-for-war-339724.html
In the wake of a March 16 referendum in which Crimeans voted to join the Russian Federation, Ukrainian leaders refused to cede any part of the peninsula, calling on their troops to prepare for war.
“Crimea was, is, and will be our territory,” said Defense Minister Ihor Tenyukh in a statement delivered at the Ukrainian Crisis Media Center on March 17.
Former heavyweight boxing champion and leader of the Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reform Vitali Klitschko announced that Ukrainian troops would remain at their bases, even after March 21, the end of a peace treaty signed by the interior ministries of Ukraine and Russia.
In accordance with the March 16 peace treaty, the Russian Interior Ministry promised to allow Ukrainian soldiers to pass freely into and out of their bases, which Russian troops had surrounded for more than two weeks. Tenyukh said that the Russian military had thus far respected the terms of the treaty.
Although tensions have de-escalated around military bases in Crimea since the signing of the treaty, neither side is prepared to back down. The Russian government expects that Ukrainian troops will surrender their military bases before the conclusion of the treaty. The Ukrainian government has said that it will not withdraw forces from Crimea, using the peace as an opportunity to replenish supplies for Ukrainian troops stationed on Crimean bases.
When asked whether Ukrainian troops would fight to defend Crimea, Tenyukh replied tersely, “The armed forces will execute their tasks, ” later adding, “Ukrainian forces will stay [in Crimea] until all their tasks have been completed.”
Speaking to the Verkhovna Rada in the evening on March 17, Ukrainian President Oleksandr Turchynov said that his government would "do everything possible to prevent war." However, he noted that "the threat of war is real...We are strengthening our defense capacity. Ukraine is ready to defend its territory."
Earlier on March 17, the Ukrainian parliament voted to allot 6.7 billion hryvnia (more than $600 million) to bolster the country’s defenses over the next three months, and to partially mobilize the armed forces.
Tenyukh said that the mobilization was intended to bring the military to “full readiness.” The Verkhovna Rada called for 40,000 troops to be mobilized, calling on reservists to prepare for active duty.
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Obama the one that waves his arms and causes the oceans tides to calm, the won THEY were waiting for: is too busy talking with the HAMAS Abbas; that want to kill all Jews and Christians.
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May God protect the Ukrainian people. This is a horrific mess, and it's not going to get better.
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Obama the one that waves his arms and causes the oceans tides to calm, the won THEY were waiting for: is too busy talking with the HAMAS Abbas; that want to kill all Jews and Christians.
The heck with Abbas, he has NCAA brackets to fill out!
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The heck with Abbas, he has NCAA brackets to fill out!
Like Beck asked, who the heck is running this country? He didn't attend another National Security meeting this weekend - Beck opined did he even know what he was going to say this morning until someone loaded it into the teleprompter for him to read.