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Anti-Maidan protesters deny they abandoned building of Luhansk Security Council

"We have agreed to make an objective investigation into the developments which took place on Maidan and invite international observers," Maidan activist says
Barricades and Soviet era red and Russian national flags with a poster reading " Stop, no entrance! " in front of the Ukrainian regional office of the Security Service in Luhansk AP Photo/Igor Golovniov
Barricades and Soviet era red and Russian national flags with a poster reading " Stop, no entrance! " in front of the Ukrainian regional office of the Security Service in Luhansk
© AP Photo/Igor Golovniov

LUHANSK, April 09. /ITAR-TASS/. Representatives of the headquarters of anti-Maidan forces, who broke into the building of the Luhansk department of the Ukrainian Security Council on Tuesday and blockaded it, have denied abandoning the building; more than a thousand people belonging to the Anti- Maidan forces are staying in the building now, they said.

'"We are in the building now; no one has left the building," said an anti - Maidan representative named Mikhail, who declined to give his surname. "The allegations about 50 people leaving the building is lie. We have a group of deputies vested with certain responsibilities. This group includes lawyers, officers and representatives of civilian professions who take part in negotiations," the man said.

The anti-Maidan representatives and representatives of the Ukrainian authorities had last met for talks at 4.00 am Wednesday Kiev time. "The talks were constructive, and the sides have agreed to postpone the storm of the building", Mikhail said. According to Mikhail, he and a few more people are conducting the negotiations. "We have talked to the top Ukrainian officials. Tigipko has been in the building to see that there are neither hostages nor representatives of the Russian Federation inside," Mikhail said.

"We have agreed that court resolutions, instructions to medicines and some other documents should be issued in Russian. We have agreed to make an objective investigation into the developments which took place on Maidan and invite international observers," Mikhail said.

"At present, we have been discussing broader management powers which we have asked for territories, including participation in elections, appointment of heads of district administrations. We want local administrations to have the right to appoint and dismiss. We need transparent and clear-cut mechanisms to make appointments by the local administrations, rather than by the presidential administration," Mikhail said.

"The problem of a referendum and federalization of Ukraine has moved to the second place now, because organization of the voting might take a long time, while we have to make decisions immediately.