MOSCOW, April 29 (RIA Novosti) – Ukrainian authorities have devised a plan to secure the release of European military observers being held by self-defense forces in eastern Ukraine, the Ukrainian UNIAN news agency reported Tuesday.
“We have devised a precise plan to secure the release of hostages, envisaging a range of necessary measures. We hope for their immediate release,” the Kiev-based news agency quoted Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Danylo Lubkivsky as saying.
Late last week, activists in Slaviansk detained on suspicion of espionage 11 members of a military mission under the auspices of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), including eight Europeans and three Ukrainians.
After negotiations, one of the OSCE team members, Swedish military officer Ingvi Thomas Johanson, was released for medical reasons. US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel called on Russia Monday to help secure the release of the remaining OSCE inspectors.
The report said the plan is being worked out together with the OSCE mission’s team in the Ukrainian capital. “We have a clear vision of our consecutive particular actions,” he said, without giving further details.
Rallies have been spreading across southeastern regions of Ukraine since March. Federalization supporters in Kharkiv, Donetsk, Gorlovka, Slaviansk and Kramatorsk have refused to recognize the legitimacy of the current Ukrainian government and are urging interim authorities to hold referendums similar to the one held in Crimea last month, which led to the republic's reunification with Russia.
