Separatists reject Putin's call
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Pro-Moscow rebels fighting in east Ukraine yesterday vowed to press on with disputed independence referendums, defying a call from President Vladimir Putin to postpone the vote in a bid to ease tensions.
"The vote will happen on May 11," the leader of the self-proclaimed People's Republic of Donetsk, Denis Pushilin, declared to reporters.
"The people's desire to hold the referendum is becoming even greater. There was a vote and a 100 percent decision was made not to change the date of the referendum," Pushilin said, to applause from members of the "republic's" ruling council.
On Sunday, people in the restive eastern region will be called to answer one simple question: "Do you support the declaration of independence by the Donetsk People's Republic?"
Insurgents in the other main rebel-held towns of Slavyansk and Lugansk also declared they would hold a plebiscite.
The move dashed hopes of an easing in the crisis sparked on Wednesday by Putin's surprise call to the rebels to postpone their referendums.
In a stunning about-face, the Kremlin strongman also backed a presidential election planned by Kiev's interim leaders on May 25 that Moscow had only recently described as "absurd".
But the Cold War-style tension was ratcheted up another notch yesterday as Russia conducted military drills, including test-firing ballistic missiles.
Russia's defence minister also warned that the country's nuclear capable forces remained on "constant combat alert".
Putin had said that Kiev must cease its military operations in the east in return for his backing the May 25 election.
But yesterday, Kiev vowed to press forward with what it calls an "anti-terrorist" operation against insurgents holding a dozen or so towns and cities in the east.
Putin's proposals had appeared to offer the first glimmer of hope that the seemingly inexorable decline into war might be averted.
But they sparked mixed reactions from a sceptical West. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier welcomed the "constructive tone" of Putin's comments, but Yatsenyuk said the Kremlin strongman was "talking through his hat". Yatsenyuk was supported by Washington who termed the move as eyewash.
Meanwhile, Russia yesterday accused the United States of breaching the rules of global commerce by slapping sanctions on its banking sector over the Ukraine crisis, at a World Trade Organization session.
The United States hit back, saying that it took its WTO obligations seriously and had assessed its sanctions package carefully to ensure it did not break the rules. Washington's stance was backed by the European Union's trade delegates.
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