Presenting Russian East Ukraine: These Are The Cities Controlled By "Separatists"

Vladimir Putin 'confirmed' yesterday that there were no Russian forces 'boots on the ground' in Ukraine and so it seems the daily growing list of cities that are falling to pro-Russian separatist forces throughout Eastern Ukraine - as the following chart shows - suggests an ever more divided nation is verging on civil war, despite the best efforts of the West to sanction their way to a fix. As Turchinov warned this morning, there is "real danger of the Russian Federation beginning a land war against Ukraine... our armed forces are on full military readiness."

[7]

Source: AFP

As Reuters reports, [8]

Ukraine's armed forces are on full military alert in case of a Russian invasion, the country's acting president said on Wednesday, reiterating concern over Russian troops massed on the border.

 

"I once again return to the real danger of the Russian Federation beginning a land war against Ukraine," Oleksander Turchinov told a meeting of regional governors in Kiev, Interfax-Ukraine reported.

 

"Our armed forces have been put on full military readiness," he said.

 

Russia says it has no plan to invade eastern Ukraine following its annexation of the Crimean peninsula in March, but Turchinov's remark made clear the pro-Western government in Kiev saw no reason to reduce the readiness of its armed forces.

 

Kiev, however, accuses Moscow of orchestrating an armed uprising in the industrial east by Russian-speaking separatists who have seized government buildings in a strong of towns and cities, largely unopposed by police.

Given NATO's moves we charted here, [9] and the map above, we could not help but find the following statement somewhat ironic...

• RUSSIA'S PUTIN, ITALY'S PM DISCUSS UKRAINE ON THE PHONE, URGE ALL SIDES TO STICK TO GENEVA DEAL ON DE-ESCALATING CRISIS - INTERFAX CITES KREMLIN

Nothing to see here.

And in the latest news... another city just fell...

#Russians [10] seize #Alchevsk [11] City Hall (#Luhansk [12] Oblast) #Ukraine [13] #RussiaInvadesUkraine [14] #RussianInvasion [15] #RussianSpring [16] pic.twitter.com/TsSoT4qFwZ [17]

— Ukrainian Updates (@Ukroblogger) April 30, 2014 [18]