The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Colonel-General Ruslan Khomchak urged state authorities and local authorities not to sow panic over the movement of Russian troops near the Ukrainian border. His words are quoted on Saturday, April 17, in the message of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook.
“I ask the representatives of state authorities and local self-government not to aggravate the situation and not stir up panic in the society. I draw your attention to the fact that it is not worth shifting the emphasis by creating paramilitary formations not defined by law, ”Khomchak said.
In his opinion, Russia can use such actions for propaganda purposes and “confirm its manipulative and false statements about the situation in Ukraine.”
The commander-in-chief himself sees in the movements of Russian troops an attempt to test Kiev’s strength and ability to give a worthy rebuff to the aggressor. He assured fellow citizens that, if necessary, the Ukrainian Armed Forces would deploy additional reserves and additional resources to protect their borders.
Khomchak made his statement after the mayors of some cities in western Ukraine called for the formation of self-defense units to repel the alleged Russian aggression.
The day before, the commander of the Joint Forces Operation of the Armed Forces (AF) of Ukraine, Sergei Naev, said that Kiev was working out defense scenarios in the event of Russian aggression without involving the armed forces of the allies. He stressed that the forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the rest of the defense sector are sufficient to protect the country.
Also on Friday, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that he was ready to discuss the situation in Donbass in the format of the Normandy Four with all leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin. Zelensky also said that Kiev is ready to return to a meaningful diplomatic dialogue on Donbass at any time. He noted that Ukraine expects any scenario for the development of events, but strives for a peaceful settlement of the conflict.
On April 15, the joint ceasefire control and coordination center (JCCC) in Donbass announced the death of a civilian from shelling by the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) in Donbass.
The day before, the adviser to the Kiev delegation in the trilateral contact group on Donbass, Aleksey Arestovich, spoke about the intention of the Ukrainian authorities to build at least two cartridge factories in the country within two to three years.
Since 2014, Kiev has been conducting a military operation against the residents of Donbass, who refused to recognize the results of the coup d’état and the new government in Ukraine. At the same time, Kiev blames Moscow for the current situation. Russia has repeatedly noted that it is not a party to the internal Ukrainian conflict. The issues of its settlement are being discussed in the Normandy and Minsk formats – with the participation of Russia, Ukraine, France, Germany.