Ukraine News. Monday 23 April. [Ukrainian sources]

MONDAY HEADLINES:
In the footsteps of Hitler: Putin was pointing out a serious failure in Ukraine. Bolton, U.S. National Security Adviser, tells Russia Conditions For Better Ties. G7 Unified In Opposing Russia’s ‘Malign' Acts, U.S. Official Says. Hungary for the third time blocked the Ukraine-NATO Commission at the level of ministers. United States urged Russia to stop hostilities in the Donbas and allow the OSCE special mission to safely carry out its work. The protesters in Yerevan joined the military. US looks forward for Russia's response to Volkers plan for Donbas. Unless the UN already reflects the real political picture of the world and needs reform. Moscow Patriarchate claims Poroshenko exceeded authority. "Exclusively the internal affair," - the Kremlin rejected intervention in the situation in Armenia. Putin's cook, Prigogine, has his own private torture chamber, where employees of the "troll factory" torture. Armenian Prime Minister Sargsyan resigned.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin pushed Russian-speaking Ukrainians away from Russia by his actions, repeating the mistake of Adolf Hitler in Austria.

This was stated by Karel Schwarzenberg, a Czech politician, diplomat, Czech foreign minister in 2007-2009 and 2010-2013, in an interview with "Apostrophe".

"The only thing that Vladimir Putin got in Ukraine is that Russian-speaking Ukrainians now feel much more Ukrainians than he did the same mistake as Hitler's in Austria: if before the war 80% of the Austrians called themselves Germans, then they were left after 8%. It looks like Putin has achieved about the same effect here,"- said the politician.

At the same time, Schwarzenberg expressed optimism about the defense capability of Ukraine and the forces of the Armed Forces.

apostrophe.ua  In Ukrainian/український

The new U.S. national security adviser has told Russia’s U.S. ambassador that Moscow must address U.S. concerns on election meddling, the "reckless" nerve-agent attack in Britain, and the situations in Ukraine and Syria before relations can substantially improve.

A White House statement on April 19 said John Bolton, who took over from H.R. McMaster on April 9, made the remarks in a meeting with Russia’s ambassador to Washington, Anatoly Antonov.

"At the first meeting between the two in their current roles, they discussed the state of the relationships between the United States and Russia," the statement said.

"Ambassador Bolton reiterated that it is in the interest of both the United States and Russia to have better relations, but that this will require addressing our concerns regarding Russia's interference in the 2016 election, the reckless use of chemical weapons in the United Kingdom, and the situations in Ukraine and Syria," it added.

Several global issues have raised tensions between Washington and Moscow despite President Donald Trump’s stated goal of improving relations between the two countries.

The U.S. intelligence community has accused Russia of a widespread cyberhacking-and-propaganda campaign aimed at influencing the 2016 presidential election vote.

The United States and Europe have slapped sanctions on Russia for its 2014 annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula and its support for separatists in eastern Ukraine............

rferl.org Click here for full access of entire article in English

A senior U.S. official has told reporters that foreign ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) industrialized nations remain determined to oppose Russia’s efforts to "destabilize" nations around the world.

"There was a G7 unity on opposing Russia's malign behavior," said the State Department official, who spoke on condition of anonymity on April 22, the first day of the G7 foreign ministers' two-day meeting in Toronto.

Nevertheless, the official said there remains an openness to talk to Russia over various important issues while still holding Moscow accountable for its destabilizing efforts around the globe.

Reuters earlier quoted sources as saying the meeting's final statement would maintain an uncompromising line with Moscow, which the G7 has condemned for its annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region and for its backing of separatists in eastern Ukraine.

"The language will be tough because of what the Russians have done until now," one source said. "But it can also be interpreted as leaving the door open."

"We are saying to them, 'If you want to be treated as a great power, then work with us'," the source added.

Reuters quoted a senior official from one G7 nation as saying the foreign ministers were concerned about what they viewed as a pattern of Russian misbehavior over the past several years.

The G7 has also blamed Russia for a nerve-agent attack on a former Russian double agent and his daughter last month in Britain. Russia has denied involvement.

Earlier, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin told his G7 counterparts that Russia was using his country as a test ground for its information war against Western democracy.

"Fundamentally, Ukraine is perceived by many, and also by Russia, as a sort of test range for testing Russian nonconventional warfare -- hybrid war," Klimkin said while urging the West to take a stronger stand in resisting Kremlin efforts.

Canada's top diplomat, Chrystia Freeland, had invited the representative from Ukraine -- which is not a G7 member -- to speak with the group's ministers. Freeland had pointed to Russian President Vladimir Putin as playing a major role in disrupting global affairs.

She said G7 members had "reaffirmed our unity in support of Ukraine and a rules-based international order where state sovereignty and territorial integrity are respected by all.".............

rferl.org Click here for full access of entire article in English

Budapest again blocked the meeting at the level of Ukraine-NATO ministers

This is reported by Ukrinform.

For the third time, Budapest is blocking the holding of a meeting of the Commission of Ukraine with the Alliance at the ministerial level, thus expressing claims regarding the language article of the Ukrainian law on education.
On Thursday, April 27, a meeting of the North Atlantic Council will take place in Brussels at the level of the Allied Foreign Ministers. The Ukrainian side planned to hold a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Commission in the framework of the meeting. All the Allies, as well as the Alliance's International Secretariat, have supported such an initiative, but Hungary has vetoed it.

   -On February 28, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine declared unconstitutional and extinct the law No. 9073 "On the Principles of the State Language Policy" dated July 3, 2012, known as the "Kivalov-Kolesnichenko Law".

- Subsequently, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Syyjarto said that the abolition of the law of Kivalov-Kolesnichenko is "a brutal attack against national minorities ."

- Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Ivanna Klimpush-Tsintsadze said that Hungary's decision to block the Ukraine-NATO commission at the ministerial level creates a dangerous precedent in NATO's cooperation with partner countries.

 espreso.tv  In Ukrainian/український

The United States urged Russia to cease hostilities and guarantee the security of the OSCE special mission in the occupied territory of the Donbas.

As informs Censor.NET, this is stated in a press release from the US Embassy in Ukraine on Twitter.

"One year after the tragic death of Joseph Stone, land mines are still prevalent in the Donbas, Russian law enforcement officers still persecute, threaten and hinder the OSCE SMM. We call on Russia to cease hostilities and allow these heroic people to do their jobs safely," the statement said.

ua.censor.net.ua  In Ukrainian/український

On Monday, people who are going in Yerevan are joined by men in uniform.

This is reported by Censor.NET with reference to "Radio Azatutyun".



Today, about two dozen young men in military uniform, led by a lieutenant-colonel, who holds the Armenian flag in their hands, have joined the students who are traveling in Yerevan.

They stated that they "are united with their people."

The Armenian police reported 232 detainees in connection with the protests in the capital of the country as of 17:30 (local time) on April 22.

On April 21, Arus Hakobyan, a journalist from the Armenian service of Radio Liberty, was attacked and injured by a civilian man during a protest rally on the highway.

In Yerevan, for several days, thousands of people are protesting against the appointment of Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan, who has been the president of Armenia for 10 years. Protest takes place in other large cities of the country.

Before the end of Sargsyan's mandate, the constitution of Armenia was changed, the country became a parliamentary republic, and the real power passed into the hands of the head of government.

The protesters accuse Sargsyan of seizing power in the country. The leader of the protesters, opposition MP Nikol Pashinyan, announced the "revolutionary situation" in Armenia and the beginning of the "people's non-violent velvet revolution".

On April 22, Pashinyan was detained by law enforcement officers. At this moment his place of residence is unknown.

ua.censor.net.ua  In Ukrainian/український

For the time being, the United States has received no Kremlin's response to the plan to resolve the situation in the Donbas proposed by U.S. Special Envoy for Ukraine Kurt Volker.

As reported by Censor.NET citing Interfax-Ukraine, this was said by U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch in a joint interview with Radio Svoboda and 112 Ukraine TV channel on Sunday.

When we look at the death and destruction caused by the forces that Russia has been controlling over the past four years, the ambassador said, we want to help find a solution. Ambassador Kurt Volker directs our efforts [to resolve the conflict in Donbas], trying to work not only with Russians, but also with Ukraine and partners, especially with the Normandy Four ... He obviously has a plan. He had been working with the Russians on this issue and now we are waiting for a response from Russia, but we have not received it yet. I think Russia is to take the next step.

Yovanovitch also expressed disappointment with the fact that the Easter truce was not observed.

We are closely monitoring the situation and we are disappointed that the ceasefire on Easter did not mean a cease-fire ... I think that this is totally unacceptable and this is what we have been seeing for four years. The injuries are received not only by the Ukrainian military personnel, but the civilian population as well, the ambassador added.

ua.censor.net.ua  In Ukrainian/український

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres acknowledged that the UN Security Council, in its current form, is not capable of settling the conflict in Syria.

"The Cold War is back," he said in an interview with SVT's Swedish public reported TV, Censor.NET with reference to Radio Liberty.

However, in the current confrontation, the UN Secretary-General sees several important differences from the similar period of the XX century: then there was a serious conflict between the US and the Soviet Union, and now it is about the interests of several participants, says Guterres. According to him, besides the United States and Russia, the countries of the Middle East are very active such as Turkey, Iran and Saudi Arabia. However, big players no longer control all the parties to the conflict, as it was before, said Guterres.

In Syria, several different armies are present, all sorts of militias are struggling, various interests are in conflict, and there is a conflict between Sunnis and Shiites. In this situation it is naive to suppose that the United Nations can solve all these problems, says Guterres.

In this regard, the UN Secretary General stressed the need for a reform of the Security Council, which, in his opinion, reflects the political picture of the world after the Second World War, and not the current state of world politics. In particular, permanent members of the UN Security Council as a tool too often use the right of veto, says Guterres.

ua.censor.net.ua  In Ukrainian/український

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate said that President Petro Poroshenko and the Verkhovna Rada had gone beyond theirauthority by interfering in the church affairs.

"The Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which has a canonical connection with the Ecumenical Orthodoxy, did not ask Patriarch Bartholomew to grant the autocephaly of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine and did not authorize either the president or the members of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to do so. Therefore, the aforementioned initiatives are official misconduct and interference in church affairs," the Department for External Church Relations of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate said in a statement, Censor.NET reports.

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate recalled that article 35 of the Constitution provides for the separation of church and state, so the initiative of the authorities is interference in church affairs.

The statement says that the authorities are asking to grant the Tomos of Autocephaly to a unified church entity which does not even exist yet. Therefore, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate believes that it is necessary to heal the rift, restore the church unity first, and then tackle the issue of changing the canonical status of the single Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

On April 17, Poroshenko said Ukraine was closer than ever before to creating an autocephalous united local church.

Pursuant to the instruction of President Petro Poroshenko, on April 20, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration of Ukraine Rostyslav Pavlenko visited Istanbul and handed over to His All-Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew the Appeal of the President of Ukraine on granting the Tomos of Autocephaly to the Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

He also handed over the Verkhovna Rada’s resolution on the support for the President’s Appeal to the Ecumenical Patriarch.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew also received the appeals of the hierarchs of the Ukrainian Orthodox churches on granting the Tomos of Autocephaly to the Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

ua.censor.net.ua  In Ukrainian/український

Speaker of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov commented on protests in Armenia and the possibility of Russia's intervention.

This is reported by Censor.NET with reference to RBC.

Peskov said that Russia is watching closely what is going on in Armenia, but not interfering.

"Why should Moscow interfere? Hypothetical considerations are inappropriate. This is exclusively the internal affair of Armenia," quotes the Peskov publication.

Peskov also advised to appeal to the Russian Ministry of Defense in response to a question on the introduction of a special regime on the Russian military base in the city of Gyumri.

The Armenian police reported 232 detainees in connection with the protests in the capital of Yerevan at 17:30 (local time) on April 22.

On April 21, Arus Hakobyan, a journalist from the Armenian service of Radio Liberty, was attacked and injured by a civilian man during a protest rally on the highway.

In Yerevan, for several days, thousands of people are protesting against the appointment of Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan, who has been the president of Armenia for 10 years. Protest takes place in other large cities of the country.

Before the end of Sargsyan's mandate, the constitution of Armenia was changed, the country became a parliamentary republic, and the real power passed into the hands of the head of government.

The protesters accuse Sargsyan of seizing power in the country. The leader of the protesters, opposition MP Nikol Pashinyan, announced the "revolutionary situation" in Armenia and the beginning of the "people's non-violent velvet revolution".

On April 22, Pashinyan was arrested by law enforcement officers. His location is unknown at this moment.

ua.censor.net.ua  In Ukrainian/український

The wine workers of the "troll factory", which is associated with the Russian businessman, Putin's cook Eugene Prigozhin, are tortured at the Trezzini hotel in St. Petersburg.

According to Censor.NET, Russian journalist Arkady Babchenko writes about it in Facebook, who moved to Ukraine.

"And did you know that facebook trolls are being put on a basement for bad work?" I am taking it seriously from St. Petersburg - the owner of the factory of trolls in Olgino, the cook of Prigogine, has his own private executioner, located at Trezini Hotel, on the University Embankment, building 21-23 There are those who, in an impulse of ministry to the Motherland, planted a little at their hands and stole from the owner of the bubble more than could be forgiven. The disciplinary action is, so to speak, right now. They are looking for a dude, a former security who has tapped in The Prigogine is seventy lakes. Go because of the torture and one of the curators of Ol'gina.Alternatively, the basement served the old men, but they were looking for people in the city and tortured later in the basement, or beat the opposition in the hallway did not taste, so they are now changing the criminals, and they are here a little rebel. So, sometimes, there is nothing, and please regret Olginsky, pat the head, throw the candy... You would know how they are there ** ** (c)"- writes Babchenko.

Recall that the secret Russian media structure in St. Petersburg appeared in 2013. The bulk of the "combat power" was originally based in Ol'hyn. Later he moved to Savushkin, 55. Employees of the structure were busy placing a lot of paid comments, aimed at the necessary channel of discussion on various network platforms.

As the Russian newspaper Fontanka reported, in mid-October the media learned how the St. Petersburg "troll factory" worked at the US elections - spending $2 million over two years, about one hundred people in the state, and six million subscribers.

Prigogine is also called the main organizer and sponsor of the so-called private military company Wagner, whose ranks in Syria are fought by hundreds of Russian mercenaries.

US Special Prosecutor Robert Müller has recently accused Prigogine, who is called Putin's cook, in financing the so-called "troll factory" responsible for interfering in the 2016 US election campaign.

On March 15, the US extended sanctions against Russia for interference with the American elections. The new list, together with the leaders and staff of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, as well as the FSB and the GRU of the Russian Federation, came both by Prigogine, as well as related companies "Internet Research Agency", "Concord Management and Consulting" and "Concord Catering".

ua.censor.net.ua  In Ukrainian/український

Armenian Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan resigned as a result of mass protests in the country.

According to Censor.NET, the decision was officially announced on Monday, April 23.

Sargsyan's statement states:

"Dear compatriots.

I appeal to all citizens of the Republic of Armenia, the elderly and young people, women and men.

I appeal to those who day and night stand on the streets with the call "Bugs of Serge", and those who are having difficulty getting to the workplace to fulfill their duty. I appeal to those who follow the airtime of the day and those who provide public safety.

I appeal to brave warriors and officers at the border, turning to my comrades in arms. I appeal to one-party people, all political forces and figures.

I address last time as the head of the country.

Nikol Pashinyan was right. I was wrong. In this situation, there are several solutions, but I will not go to any one. This is not for me. I leave the post of the country's leader, the post of the prime minister of Armenia. Streic movement against my premiership. I fulfill your requirement.

Peace, harmony and logic in our country. Thank you".

It should be noted that the resignation of the head of government was the result of many mass protests in Yerevan and other cities of the country.

ua.censor.net.ua  In Ukrainian/український

The US Treasury Department may withdraw sanction restrictions from RusAla if Oleg Deripaska's ultimate owner ceases to control the company.

This is stated in the statement OFAC (the structure of the US Ministry of Finance, which is responsible for enforcement in the area of ​​sanctions), published on Monday, reports Censor.NET with reference to Interfax.

Deripaska now controls 48.13% of RusAla.

The US authorities will review the motion for "RusAla", which requests to exclude the company from the list of sanctions (SDN List), until the end of October, said the head of the US Treasury Department, Stephen Mnuchin, quoted in the agency's statement.

Earlier on Monday, it became known that OFAC issued a license number 14, which continues to authorize a business transaction with Rusal until October 23, 2018. Earlier, the deadline for completion or cancellation of transactions was June 5. Secondary sanctions for these agreements will not be imposed.

"RusAl felt the effect of US sanctions because of its ties with Oleg Deripaska, but the US government was not going to harm people who carry out hard work and depend on RusAla and its affiliated companies," Mnuchin said.

According to him, "RusAl" has applied to the OFAC with a request for the exclusion from the SDN List, and for the period of its consideration was issued a license number 14.

RusAla shares jumped 15% a day on Monday after news that OFAC issued a license according to which transactions with RusAlom should be completed by October 23 of the current year. At the Moscow Stock Exchange, RusAla shares rose to 26.39 rubles in Moscow by 15:02. (+15%), the volume of trades for this hour exceeded 111 million rubles.

As it was reported, the US Treasury Department announced on Friday that after consultations with the State Department, the US administration imposed sanctions on seven Russian businessmen, 12 companies, 17 government officials of the Russian Federation, as well as against a Russian company dealing with weapons and related it's a bank

Shareholders of companies from the list of sanctions in a few days lost billions of dollars. Also, with the fall faced and those Russian companies that formally did not fall under the sanctions. Only on Monday, April 9, the total loss of Russian billionaires amounted to about $ 16 billion.

Sanctions also led to a weakening of the Russian currency. On April 10, the Moscow exchange rate for the first time since March 2016 overcame the mark in 80 rubles, the dollar - in 64 rubles. As of 14.34 Moscow time, the dollar was worth 64.7 rubles, and the euro was 80.1 rubles.

In response, the State Duma wrote a bill that would impose restrictions on the supply of goods and services to American descent.

ua.censor.net.ua  In Ukrainian/український