MOSCOW, August 25 (RIA Novosti) – The shelling of civilian facilities in eastern Ukraine by the army cannot be called coincidental, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday.
“Military specialists probably understand this better than many of you here, including myself, but to refer to [the shelling of civilian facilities] as inaccurate firing, accidental, or any other way doesn’t work,” Lavrov said during a briefing.
Since April, Kiev authorities have been conducting a special military operation against the independence supporters in eastern Ukraine who refused to recognize the legitimacy of new Ukrainian government.
Continuous shelling by the Ukrainian army and the attacks on residential areas have led to numerous civilian casualties, including children.
Over 2,000 people have been killed and more than 5,000 injured since the operation started, according to the UN reports. The Donetsk authorities argue that civilian casualties account for about a half of those deaths.
Moscow has repeatedly condemned Kiev’s military campaign against the Russian-speaking population in the east of Ukraine, called for an immediate stop to the bloodshed and stressed that crisis should be resolved through a peaceful dialogue.
