Akhmetov calls for pro-peace protests as terrorists began attacking large enterprises

On May 19 Ukraine’s richest businessman, Rinat Akhmetov, asked the people living in Donbass (Donetsk and Luhansk regions) to join a peaceful protest against blood shedding at noon on May 20. This protest will include workers from all the enterprises of Donbass, Akhmetov expects, and similar protests will take place the same time each day until peace is established. Akhmetov also questioned the legitimacy of “those who call themselves Donetsk Republic”, explaining that this organization is fighting against Donbass and conducting “genocide of Donbass”.

In his statement he declared that about 50 thousand people were planning to join a rally for peace on May 19 in the city of Mariupol, but later he asked top managers of Mariupol enterprises (controlled by Akhmetov) to stop preparations for the rally, as he discovered that “separatists were ready to use machine guns” against rally participants.

Another event that bothered Akhmetov, according to his statement, was the occupation of the administration of Donetsk Railway made by terrorists on the same day that may paralyze business activity in Donbass.

Alexander Paraschiy: It was not, “a genocide of Donbass”, in Akhmetov’s understanding, when separatists occupied “useless” premises like administrative buildings and police stations, kidnapped and murdered pro-Ukrainian activists. Akhmetov tolerated this so much that many experts suspected he was actively supporting separatist moves. In the last two days, however, the terrorists have changed their tactics – they have started “guerrilla attacks” on big enterprises, cutting power supplies to the Stakhanov Ferroalloy Plant on May 18, the non-ferrous metal producer Solur on May 19, and have occupied the railway office in Donetsk. If this trend continues, the economy of Donbass will be severely damaged, and this is what Akhmetov calls “genocide”.

Akhmetov’s “anger” will only add to the troubles of the pro-Russian gunmen in Donbass who are already demotivated by an increasingly successful anti-terrorist operation and the apparent betrayal of Putin, who did not annex Donbass after the “referendum” of May 11. We also expect that Akhmetov’s May 20 appeal will demotivate representatives of local administrations and law enforcement bodies to support or tolerate representatives of terrorist organizations like the Donbass Republic. This will definitely help to de-escalate Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

As soon as Akhmetov stops calling gunmen the “voice of Donbass”, we also believe he will stop insisting that this voice (calling for the delegation of much more power to Donbass regional authorities) should be heard by Kyiv.