Russian Diplomat Calls for Disarming the Ukraine’s Nazis

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Russia’a ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Andrei Kelin, warned, in remarks to the OSCE Permanent Council Thursday, that the greatest threat to the Minsk accord negotiated earlier this week, are the Nazi formations on the payrolls of oligarchs who aren’t likely to support the agreement.

“The paramilitary detachments and battalions on the big business tycoons’ payroll have lethal weapons at their disposal,” Kelin warned. “How can one guarantee these armed groups, not subordinate to the central command in Kiev, will agree to obey something?…. In fact, these are the illegal armed groups mentioned in the Minsk Accords.”

“There is no certainty they will support a peace settlement,” Kelin continued. “They must be disarmed and pulled out of the zone of the conflict. Arming these groups with more hardware, including foreign, would have catastrophic effects.” He added that with regret that “many of our counterparts prefer to turn a blind eye on the activities of Ukraine’s Right Sector group, the Azov Battalion, which uses Nazi emblems, and the Aidar Battalion, notorious for robberies and violence against civilians, and other such forces.”

Kelin expressed the hope that all the parties to the conflict will act in good faith to implement the agreement.

“One of the key conditions for successful settlement and we are constantly talking about it is to establish direct dialogue between parties,” he said. “We need to judge from the facts of life, and if everyone wants to agree to build long-term relationships, we should be ready for direct contacts.”

He also called on both sides to exercise restraint in the days leading up to the cease fire taking effect at midnight on Feb. 15.

“We hope that all sides will demonstrate restraint in the nearest future before the complete ceasefire comes into force…. We cannot allow the number of casualties and displaced persons to grow. It is necessary to create such conditions that eliminate the possibility of more shellings.”

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