KIEV, August 28. /TASS/. Ukraine’s Central Election Commission has canceled local elections in the south-eastern port city of Mariupol and some other cities close to the contact line in Donbas citing security concerns, a source in the election authority has said.
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"Already now one can definitely say that there will be no elections in Mariupol. The main reason is the threat to personal security of the members of election commissions and the voters," the source told the Apostrof newspaper.
The Ukrainian Central Election Commission is due to announce the official decision on holding local elections later on Friday.
Over the past few weeks, the outskirts of Mariupol have often come under shellings. Militias and Ukrainian forces have accused each other of violating ceasefire that came into force in mid-February under the Minsk peace agreements.
The Donetsk republic says the military hardware left near the contact line in the republic’s south cannot reach that area. "In order to carry out its provocations, the regime of [President Petro] Poroshenko kills civilians not only in Donbas but also in the territory under its control," DPR’s defense ministry spokesman Eduard Basurin said.