MOSCOW, June 17. /ITAR-TASS/. The speaker of the upper house of Russia’s parliament, the Federation Council, said Tuesday the Ukrainian authorities’ statements on unilateral demarcation of the border with Russia are incompetent and provocative.

“It seems to me such statements are yet another confirmation of unprofessionalism, incompetence and irresponsibility of the current team (of Ukrainian authorities). This looks like a provocation, an attempt to provoke further escalation of the Russia-Ukraine standoff,” Valentina Matviyenko told journalists.

Matviyenko recalled that in line with the international law, border demarcation takes place as a result of work by an interdepartmental mixed commission. The speaker specified that the process takes place “not kilometer by kilometer but meter by meter as these are destinies of people, towns and villages”.

“It is only possible on a bilateral basis, and all other statements have no legal basis and this border will never be recognized by anyone,” she emphasized.

On Monday, Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council (SNBO) Secretary Andriy Parubiy said after a Council meeting chaired by newly elected Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko that the SNBO instructed the government to carry out unilateral demarcation of the Ukrainian-Russian state border.

Clashes have been underway between the Ukrainian military and militias in Ukraine’s southeastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions, which refused to recognize the authorities who had been propelled to power amid riots during a coup in Ukraine in February 2014.

A Kiev-led punitive operation against federalization supporters in Ukraine's Southeast that involves armored vehicles, heavy artillery and attack aviation has already claimed hundreds of lives, including civilian, and left some buildings destroyed and damaged.

The Donetsk and Luhansk regions, which border on Russia, held referendums on May 11, in which most voters supported independence from Ukraine. Their independence has not been officially recognized.

Russia has repeatedly called on Kiev to end the punitive operation and engage in dialogue with Ukraine’s Southeast. The operation continues under Poroshenko, who won the May 25 early presidential elections and took office on June 7.