MOSCOW, April 23 (RIA Novosti) – Ukraine’s illegal armed Right Sector group continues to stage provocations in Ukraine despite the Geneva agreement calling for the end of violence in the country, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday.
“In Geneva we all agreed that there mustn’t be any violence. Next morning or next afternoon, [acting Ukrainian President] Turchinov declared a state … almost a state of emergency and ordered the army to shoot at the people if the people are engaged in peaceful protests," Lavrov said in an English-language interview with the RT news channel.
“In Geneva we agreed that there must be total rejection of extremists. And the Right Sector is still very active and after Geneva the Right Sector staged provocations killing several people in the vicinity of Slaviansk during the Easter Sunday,” he added.
Top diplomats from Russia, Ukraine, the United States and the European Union convened in Geneva last Thursday for talks aimed at resolving the ongoing crisis in eastern Ukraine. The parties agreed on a series of immediate steps to de-escalate tensions in the country, including the disarmament of irregular militant groups and a wide amnesty for detained protesters.
Just days after the Geneva meeting, a curfew was announced in the eastern Ukrainian city of Slaviansk after a group of unknown gunmen launched a deadly attack on a checkpoint near the city as people were celebrating Easter.
Before the incident, unknown attackers opened fire in downtown Slaviank, injuring two local citizens.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has condemned the attacks as a provocation, saying they are evidence of Kiev’s reluctance to disarm nationalists and extremists.
