20 May 2014
Last updated at 04:59 ET
Rinat Akhmetov has an army of steelworkers at his disposal
Steel magnate Rinat Akhmetov, saying "people are tired of
living in fear and terror", urged his tens of thousands of employees to
lead the protests.
A similar initiative last week led to ethnic Russian separatists losing control of the town of Mariupol.
Meanwhile, Russia said its troops on Ukraine's border were set to withdraw.
Moscow moved tens of thousands of soldiers to western Russia, provoking fears they might be preparing a takeover of eastern Ukraine, following Russia's annexation of Crimea.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered troops to pull back.
Nato said there was no sign of any redeployment having taken place - but on Tuesday, the Russian Deputy Defence Minister, Anatoly Antonov, told the BBC the process of withdrawal "had been started already".
Allegiance made clear
Ukrainian tycoon Rinat Akhmetov confronts rebellion
Rinat Akhmetov has an army of steelworkers at his disposal
Ukraine's
richest man has called for a mass rally for peace in the east of the
country, accusing separatists of leading Ukraine towards "genocide".
A similar initiative last week led to ethnic Russian separatists losing control of the town of Mariupol.
Meanwhile, Russia said its troops on Ukraine's border were set to withdraw.
Moscow moved tens of thousands of soldiers to western Russia, provoking fears they might be preparing a takeover of eastern Ukraine, following Russia's annexation of Crimea.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered troops to pull back.
Nato said there was no sign of any redeployment having taken place - but on Tuesday, the Russian Deputy Defence Minister, Anatoly Antonov, told the BBC the process of withdrawal "had been started already".
Allegiance made clear
Ukraine is facing an insurgency in the east by pro-Russian
rebels, who have taken control of areas including the major cities of
Donetsk and Luhansk.
Ukraine will hold a presidential election on Sunday following the ousting of pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych by pro-European protesters in the capital, Kiev - but the election may not take place in rebel-held parts of the east.
Rinat Akhmetov's intervention is his strongest so far
Rinat Akhmetov, whose fortune is estimated at more than $11bn
(£6.5bn), is one of the most influential people in eastern Ukraine.
His enterprises are based in the Donbass - the industrial east of Ukraine - where the insurgency is at its peak. Mr Akhmetov's employees number as many as 300,000, according to Reuters news agency.
His allegiances have until recently been in doubt, because of past links with Mr Yanukovych and business links with Russia.
But in an emergency address broadcast by his own Ukrayina TV channel, he issued a stinging criticism of the separatist rebellion.
He said Ukrainians should stage a "peaceful warning protest" at their workplaces from noon on Tuesday, and that action should continue daily "until peace is established".
Otherwise he foresaw the "genocide of Donbass".
The United Nations said last week that almost 130 people had been killed so far in the violence in the east.
Ukraine will hold a presidential election on Sunday following the ousting of pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych by pro-European protesters in the capital, Kiev - but the election may not take place in rebel-held parts of the east.
Rinat Akhmetov's intervention is his strongest so farHis enterprises are based in the Donbass - the industrial east of Ukraine - where the insurgency is at its peak. Mr Akhmetov's employees number as many as 300,000, according to Reuters news agency.
His allegiances have until recently been in doubt, because of past links with Mr Yanukovych and business links with Russia.
But in an emergency address broadcast by his own Ukrayina TV channel, he issued a stinging criticism of the separatist rebellion.
He said Ukrainians should stage a "peaceful warning protest" at their workplaces from noon on Tuesday, and that action should continue daily "until peace is established".
Otherwise he foresaw the "genocide of Donbass".
The United Nations said last week that almost 130 people had been killed so far in the violence in the east.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please leave a comment-- or suggestions, particularly of topics and places you'd like to see covered