Ukraine News in brief. Sunday 29 October. [Ukrainian sources]

TODAY'S HEADLINES:
In the Russian Federation, Volker was accused of trying to break the Minsk agreements.  Observers from "Self-help" announced a number of violations in the elections to the OTG.  Russia has imported tens of thousands of Russians into the occupied Crimea. The ties that bind Italy and Russia. IOC will decide in December on Russia's participation in the 2018 Olympic Games. Europe is also in the DPRK-Stoltenberg missile defeat zone.

WEATHER:
Kyiv, Ukraine
6c / 43 HI | RealFeel 0c / 33f
Light rain

Statement by the Special Representative of the State Department of the SSU Kurt Volker on a peacekeeping mission in the Donbass is an attempt to break the Minsk agreements.

According to Tsensor.NET , referring to RIA Novosti , Konstantin Kosachev, Chairman of the Committee of the RF Federation Council on International Affairs, said.

"If the meaning of Volker's statements is transmitted correctly, then it is obvious that this is an attempt or cancellation of Minsk agreements, or to force Russia to impose a veto on such a resolution by the UN Security Council," Kosachev said.

He noted that, according to Volker's statements, the mandate of UN peacekeepers does not involve Russia.

"All this, obviously, does not answer - and, naming things by their names, is contrary to the Minsk treaties, which are the only solution to the situation in the south-east of Ukraine," added the senator.

September 5, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed the opinion that the presence of UN peacekeepers in the Donbass would be in favor of resolving the conflict in eastern Ukraine , and instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation to make an appropriate project. resolutions for consideration by the UN Security Council.

First vice-speaker of the Verkhovna Rada, a representative of Ukraine in the Trilateral Contact Group on the situation in the Donbass Iryna Gerashchenko stated that the introduction of a UN peacekeeping mission on the line of collision in eastern Ukraine can not be the language, peacekeepers should be introduced to the entire territory occupied by Russia .

Russian Ambassador to the United Nations, Vasyl Nebenzha, said that the Russian side had sent adraft resolution on the deployment of peacekeepers in Donbass to the UN Secretary General and the head of the UN Security Council.

In numerous statements by the Russian authorities, it was emphasized that peacekeepers should be placed only on the line of delimitation of the conflicting parties, but not on the entire occupied territory of the Donbas, and especially not on the Russian-Ukrainian border.

Later, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that.

ua.censor.net.ua, Original in Ukrainian / Українською мовою

From the morning of 12:00, observers from the "Self-help" Association recorded a number of violations at the first elections of heads and council members in 201 combined territorial communities.

This was stated by the chairman of the party's executive committee, People's Deputy Oleg Lavryk, reports Tsensor.NET, referring to the party press service.

In particular, in the village. Belozerka of the Kherson region at the polling station No. 650047 revealed a lack of seals on two ballot boxes. At one of the polling stations where the elections to the Lyubimiv settlement council are held, the lack of seals numbers in the urns has also been recorded.

In the polling station election commissions of the Shabivska village council of Bilhorod-Dnistrovsky district and Vilkivskyi city council of the Kilia district of the Odessa region, in the morning, there were no seals that were at the hands of the PEC chairmen who arrived late in the polling station.

On the polling station №120489 of the Slavgorodsky settlement council in the Dnipropetrovsk region, one of the candidates from the "Self-help" was named as a candidate from the Solidarity party in the ballot box, and the name of the candidate from " Samopomichi " to the Stepaniv district district heating school of the Sumy district was mistaken. The bulletins were not reprinted, voting continues.

In the village Sofiyivka Stanislavskaya OTG in the Kherson region revealed the lack of one of the candidates for the parliamentary candidate, a self-nominated, member of the Our Territory party. The bulletins were redeemed and corrected, after which the work of the poll was restored.

Also, in the village of Pidhirtsi, Rudkivskyi district of Lviv region, an attempt was made to remove the bulletin from the polling station . A person who attempted to endorse the ballot was arrested and filed an act of violation. And it is likely that a "carousel" is being launched.

In the Chernihiv region, "Our land" candidate, who was not removed from campaigning posters, was noticed, and in the Lviv region there was an advertising bill for the Liberty party on private territory.

ua.censor.net.ua , Original in Ukrainian / Українською мовою

Over the past three years, the Russian Federation has been trying to change the demographic balance in its occupied Crimea, bringing tens of thousands of Russians there.

As Tsensor.NET reports, Russian lawyer Mykola Polozov said about it on the air of the program FACE 2 FACE with Tetyana Danilenko on the ZIK channel .

He told that over the past three years, Russia is actively trying to change the demographic balance in Crimea.

"Tens of thousands of people from the mainland who live there, work, etc., are brought there, in order to, firstly, reduce the number of Crimean Tatars, people of another nationality and, in general, those who have the so-called Crimean mentality, because there was always a special vision in the Crimea, "says Mykola Polozov.

According to him, there are a large number of people on the peninsula who are ready to return to Ukraine even tomorrow, but there are those who committed the crime, for example, betrayed the oath, participated in making illegal decisions.

"What to do with them, and where they are to go, Russia, they are, by and large, not needed." Well, what else do paramides get into the continent? They are faced with a criminal prosecution, "says Mykola Polozov.

The visitor of the program believes that, similar to the Donbass, it will be necessary to think how to reintegrate those who were in such a situation. Mykola Polozov is convinced that when Crimea returns to Ukraine, this process will take place in a civilized way.

"It will not be as trying to scare someone, it's different or something that the" Right sector "will come in, as it tried to provoke fears in 2014. No, it will happen in a civilized way. I think that most of the inhabitants of Crimea will be happy with the reintegration of Crimea back to Ukraine", - said Nikolay Polozov.

The guest of the program also emphasized that complicated issues related to territorial claims were never solved by direct participants, there was always an intervention of the international community. So, in his opinion, if Vladimir Putin and Petro Poroshenko sit at the negotiating table on the Crimea, they will not do anything.

"We will have to engage the intermediaries," he says.

ua.censor.net.ua , Original in Ukrainian / Українською мовою

Italian executives seek to build on close relations with Russia despite sanctions

On the sidelines of a high-profile Italian-Russian business conference in Verona earlier this month, Intesa Sanpaolo, Italy’s largest bank, signed an agreement with Independent Petroleum Company, a Russian oil producer subject to US sanctions that is seeking to raise $5.8bn for a new drilling project.

An Intesa spokesman later told the FT that no decision had been made on assisting or financing the project, adding: “The bank has simply agreed to evaluate the compliance with international laws and regulations of any potential business opportunities related to the project.”

But the agreement highlighted the close corporate and commercial ties that still bind Italy and Russia — despite EU and US efforts to isolate Vladimir Putin following the invasion of Ukraine in 2014 — and is a sign of the sympathy for Moscow that can be found in many quarters of Italian business and politics.

“Sanctions are illegal and have been imposed due to ideological reasons,” Intesa’s Russia president Antonio Fallico said in Verona. Mr Fallico has an award from Mr Putin for arranging a €5.2bn loan to finance the sale of a stake in Kremlin-controlled oil company Rosneft last year.

Across the EU, it is not uncommon to hear executives privately lament western sanctions against Russia that have reduced the possibilities for co-operation, mainly with the country’s vast and lucrative oil and gas industry. But in Italy, the frustration is often voiced loud and clear.

Access complete text of the editorial:  ft.com In English

The decision on the participation of Russian athletes in the 2018 Winter Olympics in the South Korean city of Pyeongchang will be taken, in light of everything, in December.

This became known after the end of the meeting of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Lausanne on Saturday, October 28, reports Tsensor.NET with reference to the German wave.

Read also: US is trying to push the IOC to stop Russia from participating in the Olympics, - Peskov.

It is expected that by December, two IOC commissions that are investigating probable state support for the doping system in Russia will present their findings. "The meeting supports the intention of the IOC executive committee to take decisions in December on the participation of Russian athletes in the Winter Olympics," reads the IOC's press release.

At the same time, the participants of the meeting expressed concern that even before the publication of the results of the investigation numerous demands were made to eliminate Russian olymians from the competitions in Pyongchang. According to sports officials, to demand any punishment is now "unacceptable".

In addition, it became known that on the eve of the Olympic and mountains 2018, a special team of IOC inspectors will conduct spot doping checks, especially for Russian athletes, as well as leaders in their disciplines and athletes, who will suddenly improve their results dramatically.

In November 2016, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) issued a report accusing the Russian Federation of the state support for doping. The report noted that Russian intelligence services covered the systemic use of doping by Russian athletes, allowed "direct intimidation and interference" to work by the WADA anti-doping laboratory accredited in Moscow.

17 countries-members of the Institute of National Anti-Doping Organizations (iNADO) on September 14 called on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to dismiss the Russian delegation from participating in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. On September 18, 12 more countries joined the demand.

ua.censor.net.ua , Original in Ukrainian / Українською мовою

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the Allies are in the reach of DPRK missiles.

He said this in an interview with the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri.

Stoltenberg said that the Alliance understands that Europe is in the reach of North Korean missiles and is also in danger.

"NATO has the ability to counterattack with determination," added Stoltenberg.

Recall that the DPRK declared that a nuclear war could begin at any moment.

On October 16, the European Union introduced new sanctions against North Korea through the country's nuclear program.

On October 10, the EU Council increased EU sanctions against the DPRK in response to "North Korea's nuclear arsenal activity and the development of ballistic missiles, for violating and explicit disregard of previous Security Council resolutions" in the framework of the UN Security Council decision.

hromadske.ua , Original in Ukrainian / Українською мовою