'Organized withdrawal'? 3000 Ukrainian soldiers killed in Debaltsevo

© AP Photo/ Sergei Chuzavkov

Approximately 3,000 Ukrainian troops were killed during battles in the city of Debaltseve, the east Ukrainian self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic's negotiator said Thursday.

"We emphasized the issue of resolving the 'surrounding of Debaltseve' back [when we were] in Minsk, and the heads of the DPR and LPR (Luhansk People's Republic) wanted to sign the solution to this problem in order to save the lives of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers, but Kiev did everything possible to brush this off by saying that the situation was under control and they weren't interested in the lives of so many military personnel," Russkaya Sluzhba news agency cited Denis Pushilin as saying.

Pushilin did not express the timeframe of the battle he had in mind.

The eastern Ukrainian self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic is prepared to guarantee the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe's mission safe passage into the area of Debaltseve as soon as sabotage-reconnaissance groups are cleansed, Denis Pushilin added.

"Over the last three days, the OSCE mission has been trying to get a guarantee of safety from us to get to Debaltseve, but taking into consideration the fact that they are trying to leave from the city of Soledar, which is under control of the Ukrainian side, we couldn't give them these guarantees because we don't have that ability and don't believe it's appropriate to take on the responsibility that the Ukrainian side won't fire at them," Pushilin said.

He said there are sabotage-reconnaissance groups in the area of Debaltseve and as soon as they are cleared out, then the DPR would be able to make guarantees for the OSCE mission.

"As soon as the city is cleansed of sabotage-reconnaissance groups, we'll be able to give the OSCE mission a safety guarantee," he said.

Debaltseve, a key transport hub in Ukraine's southeast, has been at the epicenter of intense fighting with thousands of Kiev troops encircled there by Donbas militia for weeks.

Comment: The Novorossiyan flag is now flying in central Debaltsevo, the town now has a new mayor, plans are being made for the town's reconstruction - it is 100% under NAF control. This is a catastrophic defeat for the Ukrainian Armed Forces. And they have no one to blame but themselves, or rather, their inept leaders. Just read President Poroshenko's recent flight into fantasy:

I can inform now that this morning the Armed Forces of Ukraine together with the National Guard completed the operation on the planned and organized withdrawal of a part of units from Debaltsevo. We can say that 80% of troops have been already withdrawn. ... We can assert that the Armed Forces of Ukraine have fulfilled their tasks completely. This position and success were urgently necessary for us in the course of the Minsk negotiations and after them. ... We were asserting and proved: Debaltseve was under our control, there was no encirclement, and our troops left the area in a planned and organized manner with all the heavy weaponry: tanks, APCs, self-propelled artillery and vehicles. ... I can say that despite tough artillery and MLRS shelling, according to the recent data, we have 30 wounded out of more than 2,000 warriors.

I would like to say that Russia, which yesterday required the Ukrainian warriors to lay down arms, raise the white flag and surrender, was put to shame by the given actions. ... We are holding the new defense lines. ... we successfully completed the operation and will have an opportunity to further defend the state.

Absolutely disgusting. Because of Kiev's pathological inability to compromise and admit defeat, they condemned thousands of men to death. How's that for a "planned and organized withdrawal"? Mission accomplished, Poroshenko?

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