31 July 2014
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov proposed on July 30 that the United Nations Security Council approve a resolution to allow Russian peacekeeping forces to provide security for the crash site of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17, the RIA Novosti news agency reported. He offered this proposal in response to international demands that Russia ensure access to the site to international experts.
Zenon Zawada: Lavrov’s statement indicates that Russian officials have been indeed toying with the idea of introducing Russian peacekeepers in the Donbas region. Of course, such an operation would be tantamount to a Russian occupation of the Donbas region and would hardly gain international approval. The proposal is alarming enough that it’s not clear whether it was made in jest. But it’s certainly cynical.