Separatists take military oath, denounce ceasefire
- 10 years ago
They are taking an oath to fight in eastern Ukraine.
In a ceremony in Donetsk on the town's Lenin Square they pledged to defend themselves until "the last drop of blood."
This comes a day after Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko offered a peace plan.
An offer the self-proclaimed Donbass Region Governor Pavel Gubarev refuses.
(SOUNDBITE) (Russian) SELF-PROCLAIMED DONBASS REGION GOVERNOR, PAVEL GUBAREV, SAYING:
"We are taking a military oath today. That means that the rebels become an army and we will continue to arm ourselves to defend our native land from the fascist, neo-fascist invasion."
On Friday, Poroshenko ordered a ceasefire to allow his peace plan to take root. The ceasefire ends at 10 p.m. on June 27.
The Kremlin has denounced the move -- calling it an ultimatum rather than a peace offering
In a ceremony in Donetsk on the town's Lenin Square they pledged to defend themselves until "the last drop of blood."
This comes a day after Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko offered a peace plan.
An offer the self-proclaimed Donbass Region Governor Pavel Gubarev refuses.
(SOUNDBITE) (Russian) SELF-PROCLAIMED DONBASS REGION GOVERNOR, PAVEL GUBAREV, SAYING:
"We are taking a military oath today. That means that the rebels become an army and we will continue to arm ourselves to defend our native land from the fascist, neo-fascist invasion."
On Friday, Poroshenko ordered a ceasefire to allow his peace plan to take root. The ceasefire ends at 10 p.m. on June 27.
The Kremlin has denounced the move -- calling it an ultimatum rather than a peace offering