Donetsk, Jul 12 - DAN. Dramatic changes in the Donbass conflict area are possible in the run-up to the Ukrainian presidential election in 2019, Donetsk People’s Republic Operations Command deputy commander Eduard Basurin said in an interview with the Donetsk News Agency.
“I believe that major changes might occur on the front ahead of the Ukrainian election,” Basurin said as he replied to the question about the possibility of stronger Ukrainian military aggression. The upcoming meeting between the Russian and U.S. leaders in Helsinki on July 16 might offer a clearer perspective though, he noted.
The Donbass policy pursued by the incumbent Kiev regime led by President Petr Poroshenko directly depends on Washington’s political will. “If he (U.S. President Donald Trump - eds DAN) has plans for further use of Ukraine as an instrument of aggression against Russia, the conflict will escalate, and if he has changed his mind, nobody will allow Petr Poroshenko to carry out active fighting,” Basurin said.
Earlier, Moscow and Washington announced that the meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump would take place in Finland’s capital on July 16. The summit’s agenda is expected to include the Ukrainian and Syrian issues.*jk