Russia: Peacekeepers in Donbas needed only for protection of OSCE
Russian Federation Council Chairman Valentina Matviyenko said she sees no logic in the U.S. State Department’s proposal to deploy UN peacekeepers to the border of Russia and Ukraine.
“I see no logic in this suggestion,” said the speaker of the Federation Council to reporters after a meeting with Speaker of the Mejlis of Turkmenistan Akja Nurberdiyewa, as reported by TASS news agency.
Matvienko brought up the fact that Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the Russian Foreign Ministry to ask the UN to deploy peacekeepers in the conflict zone in Donbas.
“It’s about the fact that the OSCE mission is currently operating in the territory of Donbas, on the line of engagement. And peacekeepers are needed to ensure the security of the OSCE, because the OSCE does not have the ability to provide armed protection for the employees who are participating in this mission,” she said.
“If OSCE personnel are not only on the line of engagement (and they travel all over the territory), then, naturally, peacekeepers will accompany them throughout the territory, but accompany them to ensure security. There is no other reason for these peacekeepers to be there,” Matviyenko said.
According to her, “If someone starts to dictate any other conditions, they do not understand what is happening in the conflict zone.”
“There is the Ukrainian side, but there is also the Donetsk and Luhansk side, which also has the right to vote as well as their own position and opinion,” said Matviyenko.
“And those who would like to surround the inhabitants of the self-proclaimed Republic of Donbas with barbed wire and simply destroy these people, I don’t think this plan will be passed by anyone,” she concluded.