Situation in Crimea calm, Ukrainian ships' detention didn't affect life there - Aksyonov
SIMFEROPOL. Nov 26 (Interfax) - The detention of three ships of the Ukrainian Navy off the shore of Crimea has not affected life in the region, according to head of Crimea Sergei Aksyonov.
"The detention of the Ukrainian military ships that committed a provocation off the shores of Crimea did not have any impact on the situation on the peninsula. It is completely calm," Aksyonov wrote on his Facebook page on Monday.
"Crimean residents have already become used to provocations by the neighboring state, the style of Kyiv and Poroshenko personally. We know that our President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin is keeping the situation under his personal control, and the FSB [Federal Security Service], the Russian Armed Forces, and the Interior Ministry are reliably defending peace and calm in Crimea. Our border guards accomplished all their tasks admirably and in a highly professional manner, neutralized the threat without any losses," he wrote.
The lives of the three injured Ukrainian sailors are not in danger, Aksyonov said. "All necessary assistance is being provided to them. We understand clearly that they have become hostages to the existing political situation. Poroshenko does not care about people. Kyiv was aware that it was endangering the lives of its sailors by sending these three ships, which can hardly stay afloat, to violate Russia's state border. But it decided to sacrifice them. I am sure that the sailors went to fulfill this order as if it were their funeral. And that the majority of Ukrainian residents do not support such provocations," Aksyonov said.
Kyiv does not have anything to oppose Russia with in military terms, he said. "The Ukrainian army's morale is also very low. There are no successes in terms of the development of the economy or the improvement of citizens' life in the country. Everything has collapsed, and Poroshenko's rating is nearing zero. This means he has one way to cling to power: to stage a provocation, declare martial law under this pretense, and become the sole dictator during this period," Aksyonov said.