Crisis in Ukraine: Daily Briefing – 28 January 2016, 7PM Kyiv time

The National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (RNBO) reported that yesterday towards Luhansk, Russian-terrorist forces fired on Ukrainian positions near Tryokhizbenka with small arms. Towards Donetsk, Russian-terrorist forces fired on Ukrainian positions along the entire front, mostly with small arms and grenade launchers. Russian-terrorist forces shelled Ukrainian positions near Troitske with mortars. Towards Mariupol, Russian-terrorist forces fired on Ukrainian positons at Maryinka and shelled Ukrainian positions at Talakivka with mortars. The RNBO reported that in the last 24 hours, no Ukrainian soldiers were killed or wounded.

Canada Minister of Foreign Affairs S. Dion announced that he would travel to Ukraine next week. Speaking in Parliament on 27 January, Dion stated he would visit Ukraine to “express to the Government of Ukraine the steadfast support of Canada for Ukraine and how much we deeply disagree with the invasion and the interference of the Russian government in Ukraine.”

Ukraine’s President P. Poroshenko will meet with German Chancellor A. Merkel in Berlin for bilateral discussions on 1 February, Poroshenko’s press service reported.

NATO Secretary General J. Stoltenberg’s Annual Report 2015 stated, “Over the last several years, there has been a significant increase in Russia’s military activity near NATO’s borders, as well as a demonstrated willingness to use force in pursuit of its foreign and defence policy goals. Russia’s use of force in Georgia in 2008, and again with the annexation of Ukrainian territory in March 2014, has fundamentally challenged the vision of a Europe whole, free and at peace and undermines the principles of international relations as agreed in the Helsinki Final Act. For the first time since the Second World War, one European country illegally annexed part of another. Concurrent with its increasingly aggressive behaviour, Russia is reducing military transparency through non-implementation and selective implementation of some of the most important arms control agreements and confidence- and security building measures that comprise the Euro-Atlantic security architecture.” The full report is available at http://nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news_127503.htm

Ukraine’s Parliament gave consent to the General Prosecutor of Ukraine to arrest and prosecute MP Serhiy Kliuyev, brother of the former head of the Yanukovych presidential administration. During the parliamentary session, the first deputy General Prosecutor Y. Sevruk stated that during investigations it was established that “Yanukovych, Kliuyev and other persons developed a plan, aimed at the legalization of criminally acquired property,” Radio Svoboda reported.