Pro-Russians retain sieges in eastern Ukraine

Key government buildings in eastern Ukraine remain in control of pro-Russian separatists.

On Saturday, the separatists kept their hold on the local government building in Donetsk and demanded a referendum on joining Russia.

A similar occupation is also underway in the state security office of the eastern city of Lugansk. The sieges started on April 6.

The interim government in Ukraine, which has taken over following the February ouster of President Viktor Yanukovych, has agreed to give more powers to the country’s eastern regions. The mainly Russian-speaking population there, however, is demanding either independence or accession to Russia.

Interim Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, who was in Donetsk on Friday, promised never to limit the use of the Russian language in the region. He also admitted that he “must respond to people’s desire to have more regional authority.”

His comments came after a representative of the so-called “People’s Republic of Donetsk” said activists occupying the Donetsk regional administrative building were ignoring an ultimatum from Ukrainian authorities to vacate the building.

“There are a lot of such statements. We hear one announcement after another. We hear them pretty much every two hours. I must admit we are starting to get used to that, to life under constant threat, but neither us nor the people who support us are ready to give in, and we won’t give in,” representative Denis Pushilin said.

Pro-Russian demonstrations gained momentum in Ukraine after Crimea declared independence from the country and formally applied to become part of the Russian Federation following a referendum on March 16.