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Russia’s influence on DPR has limits — Kremlin comments on militia commander’s murder

The Kremlin spokesman admitted that Russia "holds weight with Donbass’ representatives"

Flowers outside an apartment block where DPR militiaman Arsen Pavlov was killed Mikhail Sokolov/TASS

Flowers outside an apartment block where DPR militiaman Arsen Pavlov was killed

© Mikhail Sokolov/TASS

MOSCOW, October 18. /TASS/. Russia’s influence on the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic leadership has its limits, the Kremlin’s Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said commenting on the DPR representatives’ statements, who claimed that by killing one of the militia commanders, Arseny Pavlov, Kiev has declared war on the DPR.

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"Russia certainly holds weight with Donbass’ representatives, but this influence has its limits," Peskov told journalists.

Earlier, the DPR’s leader Alexander Zakharchenko stated that the Ukrainian Security Service was behind the terrorist attack carried out on October 16 when a blast tore through the entrance to an apartment building in Donetsk taking the life of Arseny Pavlov. Zakharchenko likened this murder to Kiev declaring war on Donbass.

An investigative group from the DPR’s Interior Ministry and the Ministry of State Security describes this blast as a terrorist attack. According to the preliminary results, Ukrainian secret services’ agents active on the republic’s territory had a hand in this crime.

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