Donetsk People's Republic

Donetsk People's Republic Доне́цкая наро́дная респу́блика
Flag Coat of arms
Districts with government buildings under pro-Russian control or attempted control
Capital and largest city	Donetsk
Government
• People's Governor	Pavel Gubarev (in absentia)
• Chairman of the Council	Denis Pushilin
• Commander of the People's Army	Igor Kakidzyanov
Legislature	Provisional People's Government Donetsk People's Council
Independence from Ukraine
• Declared	7 April 2014
• Referendum	11 May 2014

The Donetsk People's Republic (Template:Lang-ru, Donetskaya narodnaya respublika) is a self-proclaimed state, declared on 7 April 2014 by several hundred activists who currently occupy the Regional Administration Building and the City Hall buildings in Donetsk, as well as other cities in the region. Separatists vowed to fan out and take control of strategic infrastructure across the province, and demanded public officials who wished to continue their work to switch allegiance. In addition to Donetsk city, as of 14 April, pro-Russian separatists have taken control of government buildings in other cities within the oblast, including Mariupol, Horlivka, Sloviansk, Kramatorsk, Yenakiyeve, Makiivka, Druzhkivka, and Zhdanivka.

The Donetsk People's Republic has not been recognized by any other state. According to western media, there is little evidence that the separatists enjoy any public support. On the other hand, the separatists do not really want an independent country. Their stated goal is either the federalization of Ukraine, or to join Russia.

Separatists retain control of the capital's administrative building, but have been cut off of electricity as of 10 April. According to the Kyiv Post, most of the protesters are 50 years or older, while inside the building, many of the occupiers are younger but from other cities like Mariupol, Kherson and Mykolaiv. Women are also inside the building. Numerous Russian citizens, including leaders of various far-right militant groups, have also taken part in the events. The OSCE reported that all the main institutions of the city observed by the Monitoring Team seemed to be working normally as of 16 April.

The insurgency is headed by the Donetsk Republic organization, a group banned in Ukraine since 2007. The group's leader, Andrei Purgin, was arrested weeks prior on charges of separatism. The political leader of the state in absentia is the self-declared People's Governor Pavel Gubarev, a member of the neo-Nazi Russian National Unity paramilitary group and former Communist Progressive Socialist Party of Ukraine, who is also currently arrested on charges of separatism and illegal seizure of power. Denis Pushilin is the chairman of the government, while Igor Kakidzyanov has been named as the commander of the "People's Army".

On 15 April, the interim government in Kiev announced a counteroffensive to confront the pro-Russian militants, but it unraveled in disarray as an entire contingent of 21 armored vehicles surrendered. On 17 April, tensions de-escalated as Russia, the US, and the EU agreed on a roadmap to defuse the Ukraine crisis.

Background

Ukrainian Riot Police guarding the entrance to the RSA building on 7 March.

See also: Donetsk Republic (organization) and 2014 pro-Russian protests in Ukraine

Similar attempts to seize the RSA building have been occurring since pro-Russian protests began in the Eastern and Southern regions of Ukraine in the wake of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution. Pro-Russian protesters previously occupied the Donetsk RSA from 1 March to 6 March, before being removed by the Security Service of Ukraine. According to Ukrainian authorities the seizure of RSA's are part of "a script which has been written in the Russian Federation" to destabilize Ukraine and bring in Russian troops executed by "about 1,500 radicals in each region who spoke with clear Russian accents".

Public opinion

In a poll conducted by Kyiv International Institute of Sociology in the first half of February 2014, 33.2% of polled in Donetsk Oblast believed "Ukraine and Russia must unite into a single state". This figure was lower in 2013, with 29.8% of those questioned believing that Russia and Ukraine should unite. However, this has little relevance in what they believe the future should hold for Donetsk but rather the whole of Ukraine.

According to a poll conducted by the Donetsk Institute of Social Research and Policy Analysis, 66% of Donetsk residents view their future in a united Ukraine, 4.7% support separatism, while 18.2% support joining Russia. A second poll conducted 26–29 March showed that 77% of residents condemned the takeover of administrative buildings, while 16% support such actions. Furthermore, 40.8% of Donetsk citizens support rallies for Ukraine's unity, while 26.5% support rallies which are pro-Russia.

While support for regional independence is low, only a third of polled Donetsk inhabitants identified themselves as "citizens of Ukraine", preferring instead "Russian-speaking residents of Ukraine" or "residents of Donbass".

Antimajdan candidate on last democratic elections (before the coup) in the Donetsk oblast received 83% of votes

The New York Times says that many locals consider it a 'crackpot project'.

History

Pro-Russian protesters occupying the Donetsk RSA building on 7 April 2014.

Veterans of the Soviet war in Afghanistan play a song in support of the protesters.

A map of the Donetsk Oblast in the occupied RSA building, defaced with the word "Russia" in Russian.

Fighter planes presumably of the Ukrainian Air Force fly over the occupied RSA building, 7 April.

On Sunday, 6 April 2014, between 1,000 and 2,000 pro-Russia protesters attended a rally in Donetsk pushing for a Crimea-style referendum on independence from Ukraine. The proposed referendum has no status-quo option. After which, 200 separatists (according to Igor Dyomin, a spokesman for Donetsk local police, about 1,000) pro-Russian protesters stormed and took control of the first two floors of the building, breaking down doors and smashing windows. The administration headquarters were empty, with only guards inside, as government officials would not work there on Sundays. The separatists demanded that if an extraordinary session was not held by officials, announcing a referendum to join Russia, they would declare unilateral control by forming a "People's Mandate" at noon on 7 April, and dismiss all elected council members and MPs. The people who voted within the RSA were not elected to the positions they assumed. According to the Russian ITAR-TASS the declaration was voted by some regional legislators, however there are claims that neither the Donetsk city council nor district councils of the city delegated any representatives to the session.

On 6 April, the group's leaders announced that a referendum, on whether Donetsk Oblast should "join the Russian Federation", would take place "no later than 11 May 2014." Additionally, the group's leaders have appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin to send Russian peacekeeping forces to the region.

On the morning of 8 April, the 'Patriotic Forces of Donbass', a pro-Kiev group unrelated to Donetsk Republic organization who proclaimed independence and seized the council, issued a statement on its Facebook page against the other group's declaration of independence, citing complaints from locals. Their announcement stated that they would quash the potential state's establishment, cancel the referendum, and, on their part, stated that the declaration is illegal. Protesters reportedly gave up some weapons too. Despite this, the Donetsk Republic organization continued to occupy the RSA and declared themselves the legitimate authority, and upheld all previous calls for a referendum and the release of their leader Pavel Gubarev. In the afternoon of 8 April, about a thousand people rallied in front of the RSA listening to speeches about the Donetsk People's Republic and to Soviet and Russian music.

On the second day of the Republic, organizers decided to pour all of their alcohol out and announce a prohibition law after issues arose due to excess drinking in the building.

Anti-semitic policy

On Passover eve, three members of the Donetsk Republic, carrying the flag of the Russian Federation, passed out a leaflet to Jews that informed all Jews over the age of 16 that they would have to report to the Commissioner for Nationalities in the Donetsk Regional Administration building and register their property and religion. It also claimed that Jews would be charged a $50 'registration fee'. If they did not comply, they would have their citizenship revoked, face 'forceful expulsion' and see their assets confiscated. The interim government's regional chairman confirmed that the flyers were distributed by his organization, but denied any connection to the leaflet's content. The leaflet stated the purpose of registration was because "Jewish community of Ukraine supported Bendery Junta," and "oppose the pro-Slavic People's Republic of Donetsk."

According to Michael Salberg, director of the international affairs at the New York City-based Anti-Defamation League, is currently unclear if the leaflets were issued by the pro-Russian leadership or a splinter group operating within the pro-Russian camp or someone else.

Standoff

In response to the actions, acting Ukrainian President Oleksandr Turchynov vowed to launch a major counter-terrorism operation against separatist movements in the country's eastern regions. Later that day on 7 April, the SBU office in Donetsk was retaken by SBU Alpha Group. Russian media claims that, Alfa Special unit from Donetsk refused orders from Kiev, explaining it by the fact that their duties are counter-terrorism actions.

Ukrainian acting Interior Minister Arsen Avakov announced on 9 April that the separatist protests in Ukraine's eastern region would be resolved within 48 hours – either through negotiations or the use of force. "There are two opposite ways for resolving this conflict -- a political dialogue and the heavy-handed approach. We are ready for both," he said, according to official news agency Ukrinform. Acting President Olexander Turchynov has already signed a decree to take the Donetsk Regional State Administration "under state protection," and has offered amnesty to the separatists if they lay down their arms and surrender. On the 11th, Prime Minister Yatsenyuk said he was against the use of law enforcement scenarios, "but there is a limit."

Expansion of territorial control

On 12 April, unmarked pro-Russian soldiers seized the Interior Ministry office in Donetsk without resistance. Following negotiations with those in the building, the head of the Donetsk Ministry of Internal Affairs resigned. The police later denied that the building had been taken, but rather that the building had only been surrounded by pro-Russian protesters. Former Berkut officers, who had been dissolved by the government following their actions during the February revolution, took part in the raid and sided with the separatists in Donetsk and spoke to the crowd outside the police department.

Armed separatists attempted to capture a chemical plant housing a significant amount of explosives, but were repelled by the Ukrainian National Guard. Two of the attackers were arrested and a police officer was injured.

On 16 April, pro-Russian gunmen stormed the Donetsk City Hall. The gunmen allowed the municipal employees to leave the building without harm. Mayor Alexander Lukyanchenko was said to be inside negotiating with the separatists, who are demanding a referendum on the status of the Donbass region.

Sloviansk

Main article: Sloviansk Standoff

Sloviansk city council under control of masked Pro-Russian men armed with Kalashnikov assault rifles and rocket launchers

On 12 April masked men in army fatigues and bulletproof vests, armed with Kalashnikov assault rifles captured the executive committee building, the police department and SBU office in Sloviansk, a city in the northern part of the Donetsk Oblast. According to the Ukrainian Interior Ministry the militant supporters of the Donetsk Republic fired indiscriminately on the building. In raiding the police armory, the militants seized at least 400 handguns and 20 automatic weapons. "The aim of the takeover was the guns," a Ukrainian police statement said. "They are giving these guns to participants in the protest in Sloviansk." The mayor of Sloviansk, Nelya Shtepa, supported the militants and claimed that the town administration building was seized by activists and militia volunteers, who removed the Ukrainian flag from the building and replaced it with a Russian one. "I cannot object to them, since Slavyansk considers Russia its elder brother and we will not fight with Russia," she said of the militants. A group of 150 people supported the armed militants outside the police station in Sloviansk and were hostile to journalists, telling them to "go back to Kiev." The following morning after the events in Sloviansk, the Ukrainian government announced a counter-terrorism operation would take place in the city.

The counter-terrorism operation began the following morning on 13 April where police cleared a highway checkpoint controlled by separatists. A group of insurgents exited their vehicle and began opening fire on Ukrainian police, where 2 SBU officers were killed and several Ukrainian military were injured; 1 separatist was also killed in the shootout while the remainder fled into the woods. The car the gunmen were in had a Poltava Oblast license plate, which was traced to the private security firm Yavir. In an unrelated shootout in the city itself, two people were shot dead by an assailant in plain clothes, and another wounded.

The acting Head of the City Administration and commander of the "self-defense forces" Ponamorev claimed that 25 Parachute Brigade of the Ukrainian army has sided with the activists and refused orders from Kiev.

Armed activists took control over the airport near the Sloviansk city.

April 13, activists stopped and seized a truck full SAM missile system Igla, which is claimed to belong to the Ukrainian army.

14 April, Ukrainian army Grad artillery unit fell from a bridge into a river resulting in the death of two soldiers.

Other cities

On April 12, in Horlivka, men attempted to seize the police department but were stopped. The purpose of the raid was an attempt to seize weapons, police said. Police stated they would use firearms to defend against "criminals and terrorists." However, on April 14, after a tense standoff, the police headquarters was successfully stormed by activists. Some members of the local police unit defected to the People's Republic earlier in the day, while the remaining officers eventually retreated, allowing the pro-Russian forces to take control and raise the flag of the People's Republic over the building. The chief of police was captured, beaten, and hospitalized. 13 April, police chief of Horlivka along with police officers stand on the people side and refused to accept orders from Kiev. Pro-Russian extremists also reportedly tried to take the police station in Shakhtarsk, and seize the police station in Krasnyi Lyman.

In Kramatorsk, northern Donetsk region, a shootout with police occurred as the separatists attacked the police station before capturing it. Donbass Militia members tore off the sign of the station and raised the flag of the Donetsk Republic organization. The gunmen then gave an ultimatum that if by Monday the city's mayor and his subordinates did not side with the Republic, then they would "take the executive committee;" a crowd of separatists rallied around the executive committee building and flew the Republican flag from the top of the building. Other activists had already entered the city council building. A Donetsk Republic representative adressed locals outside the police station, and was received negatively with booing. Outside the city, separatists set up a road checkpoint near a local military airfield.

On 13 April, activists and supporters of federalization took administration in Maripol In Druzhkivka, pro-Russian militants reportedly seized the district administration.

Ukraine's Interior Ministry denied that Krasnyi Lyman, Kramatorsk, and Krasnoarmiisk's government buildings had fallen to separatists. April 13 activists occupied local administration and the police station in the city of Maripol In Artemivsk, separatists failed to capture the police station but entered the city council building and raised the flag of the Donetsk Republic from the roof of the building.

Donbass People's Militia members took the regional council building in Khartsyzk.

On April 14, pro-Russia activists seized the local council building in Zhdanovka and declared loyalty to the People's Republic.

Kiev government counteroffensive

On April 15, Kiev announced to launch a counteroffensive against Pro-Russian Protesters. The correspondents did not hear or see any fights in the morning. Ukrainian troops re-took the airfield in Kramatorsk after a gunfight with the people’s militia which resulted in at least four deaths.

After the Ukrainian army re-took the airfield, the commanding general of the unit, Vasily Krutov, was surrounded by hostile protesters, who demanded to know why the Ukrainian troops had fired upon locals earlier. Krutov was eventually dragged back to the airbase and, along with his unit, were blockaded by protesters who vowed not to let the troops leave their base. Krutov later told reporters that "if they (separatists) do not lay down their arms, they will be destroyed."

The people's militia entered Sloviansk on April 16 with six armored personnel carriers they claimed to have obtained from part's of the Ukrainian Armed Forces who had switched allegiance in the city of Kramatorsk. Reports say the occupants were disarmed after the vehicles were blockaded by locals. In another incident, several hundred residents of Pchyolkino, south of Sloviansk, surrounded another column of 14 Ukrainian armoured vehicles. After negotiations, the troops were allowed to drive their vehicles away, but only after agreeing to surrender the magazines from their assault rifles. Three members of the people's militia were killed and eleven were wounded after an attempted storming of the National Guard base in Mariupol was repulsed.

According to BBC's David Stern, "Ukraine's 'anti-terrorist' operation is looking more and more a non-event, or worse, an outright fiasco." Ukrainian soldiers refused so far to shoot at their own people and the offensive is losing its momentum

Identity of militants

Main article: Donbass People's Militia

Donbass militiaman in Sloviansk

The well-organized and well-armed pro-Russian militants have been described as resembling those which occupied regions of Crimea during the 2014 Russian military intervention in Ukraine. Former Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Admiral Ihor Kabanenko, claims the militants are Russian military reconnaissance and sabotage units. Interior Minister Avakov stated the militants in Krasnyi Lyman used Russian-made AK-100 series assault rifles fitted with grenade launchers, and that such weapons are only in issue in the Russian Federation. "The Government of Ukraine is considering the facts of today as a manifestation of external aggression by Russia," said Avakov. Militants in Sloviansk arrived in military trucks without license plates.

According to Georgij Alafuzoff, the Director of Intelligence at the European Union Military Staff, even if there is presence of the Russian military in Ukraine, it is not so large like it was in Crimea. He suggests the militants are mostly the local citizens, dissapointed by the situation in the country.

Nick Paton Walsh, reporting from Donetsk for CNN, stated that, contrary to the claims by the US State Department, there are no obvious links between the protesters and the Kremlin. He further added that the physical apppearance of the militants is different from that of the unidentified troops, spotted throughout Crimea while it was in the process of secession.

US Secretary of State John Kerry said the militants "were equipped with specialized Russian weapons and the same uniforms as those worn by the Russian forces that invaded Crimea." The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations said the attacks in Sloviansk were "professional," "coordinated," and that there was 'nothing grass-roots seeming about it'. UK foreign minister William Hague stated “I don’t think denials of Russian involvement have a shred of credibility, [...] The forces involved are well armed, well trained, well equipped, well co-ordinated, behaving in exactly the same way as what turned out to be Russian forces behaved in Crimea.”

Militants in Sloviansk appeared to include professional soldiers as well as retired veterans, civilian and volunteers, while those in Donetsk have been confirmed to include former Berkut riot police officers. When asked by The Sunday Telegraph where the weapons had come from, one armed Afghanistan war veteran nodded at the Russian flag flying from the police station and said: "Look at that flag. You know which country that represents." A rebel commander in Donetsk, Pavel Paramonov, has openly told journalists he is from Tula, Russia. In Horlivka, police who defected were commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel of the Russian Army.

David Patrikarakos, a correspondent for the New Statesman said the following: "While at the other protests/occupations there were armed men and lots of ordinary people, here it almost universally armed and masked men in full military dress. Automatic weapons are everywhere. Clearly a professional military is here. There’s the usual smattering of local militia with bats and sticks but also a military presence. Of that there is no doubt."

According to a spokesman for the Donetsk People's Republic, the militants in Sloviansk are "an independent group who are supporting the Donetsk protest," while militants in Sloviansk and Kramatorsk and have identified themselves as members of Pavel Gubarev's Donbass People's Militia.

Leadership

Donetsk People's Council was formed out of protesters who occupied the building of the Donetsk Regional Council on 6 April 2014.

Ukrainian presidential candidate Oleg Tsarov, who had recently been kicked out of the Party of Regions, traveled to Donetsk and said he was ready to become a leader of what he called the "South-east movement". Tsarov also assured separatists in Donetsk that will do everything to disrupt the presidential elections, which are scheduled for May 25. "I'm sure that will be no elections," he said. He then promised that he would create a "central authority" within the center of Donetsk. Despite his stance towards the elections, he also insists on running in them, which has been met by a negative response by protesters who demand a referendum and boycott of the elections. On 14 April, police searched Tsarov's vehicle and found assault rifle ammunition.

Reactions

Domestic

• Donetsk City Council (and nine district councils of the city) distanced itself from the RSA occupiers and they stated (on 7 April): "The Donetsk city council and district councils continue working in the legal field. We see as ensuring the vital functions of the city as our main task".
• The Independent Trade Union of Miners in Donetsk announced it would not support the pro-Russian separatist movement.

Foreign

• Canada - Prime Minister Harper charged that the events are "strictly the work of Russian provocateurs sent by the Putin regime." Canadian foreign affairs minister Baird described events in Ukraine as "brazen and co-ordinated actions" by Russia. He said: "I don't know who the Russian Federation thinks it's kidding when it tries to pretend that it has nothing to do with them," and that there are "very clear and disconcerting parallels" between the developments in eastern Ukraine and those that took place before Russia moved to annex Crimea." He told reporters "there's no doubt, for a good number of weeks, provocateurs and frankly thugs have been crossing the border" into Ukraine.
• Russia – On 7 April Russia's foreign ministry accused Ukrainian authorities of "blaming" the Russian government for all its troubles and stated "Ukrainian people want to get a clear answer from Kiev to all their questions. It's time to listen to these legal claims". It also stated it was "carefully observing" events in the east and south of Ukraine, and again called for "real constitutional reform" that would turn Ukraine into a federation. In an 7 April opinion piece in The Guardian Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov wrote that it was the west, and not Russia, that was guilty of destabilising Ukraine and that "Russia is doing all it can to promote early stabilisation in Ukraine". The Russian Foreign Ministry issued a stern condemnation "criminal order" by Kiev for armed aggression against Donetsk, "The Kiev authorities, who self-proclaimed themselves as a result of a coup, have embarked on the violent military suppression of the protests,", demanding that "the Maidan henchmen, who overthrew the legitimate president, to immediately stop the war against their own people, to fulfill all the obligations under the Agreement of 21 February,"
  • Republic of Crimea - Crimean Deputy Prime Minister Rustam Temirgaliyev expressed the hope that the Donetsk Republic (as well as other south-eastern Ukrainian regions) would form a 'Ukrainian Federation' and join the Union State.
• United Kingdom – British Foreign Secretary William Hague has said there is no doubt that Moscow is behind the destabilization of eastern Ukraine. "There can't really be any real doubt that this is something that has been planned and brought about by Russia," he said, adding that Russia was deliberately "violating the independence and sovereignty of Ukraine, and that "I don't think denials of Russian involvement have a shred of credibility."
• United States – US Secretary of State John Kerry said on 7 April 2014 that the events "did not appear to be spontaneous" and called on Russia to "publicly disavow the activities of separatists, saboteurs and provocateurs" in a phone call to his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. A spokeswoman for the White House National Security Council has noted that the separatists appeared to be supported by Russia. "We saw similar so-called protest activities in Crimea before Russia's purported annexation," she said in a statement, adding: "We call on President (Vladimir) Putin and his government to cease all efforts to destabilize Ukraine, and we caution against further military intervention."

Political experts

• Alexander J. Motyl, professor of political science at Rutgers University argues that Russia’s direct and indirect involvement in the violence in eastern Ukraine qualifies as a state-sponsored terrorism, and that those involved qualify as “terrorist groups."

See also

• Kharkov People's Republic
• Lugansk Parliamentary Republic
• 2014 pro-Russian protests in Ukraine
• Pavel Gubarev
• Donetsk–Krivoy Rog Soviet Republic
• List of active separatist movements in Europe
• 2014 Crimean crisis