This is a clip from "The Attempted Siege of Donetsk I"
Back in Donetsk, a local television studio welcomed, "for the purpose of making an address to the citizens of DPR, the Minister of Defence and the Chairman of the Security Council," Igor Strelkov.[27]
Strelkov was asked why Slavyansk was surrendered and forces redeployed to Donetsk and other cities. He responded:
From the very inception of the hostilities, Slavyansk served as a shield for Donetsk. In taking our positions in Slavyansk, we set up a shield to protect the entire territory of DPR and LPR. We bore on the main brunt of the enemy offensive and diverted its forces, thereby giving the political and social leadership of the Republics an opportunity to organise, and, in acting in accordance with our example, to take the reigns of (local) power from the Junta, to a certain degree preventing it from establishing itself. That is why, when we ascertained that this task had been completed - this task specifically - that in both Donetsk and in Lugansk, governments had been established that conformed with the will of the people in terms of implementing state sovereignty, conducting the referendum and being capable of creating their own armed forces, (we understood) that our own task had been substantially fulfilled...
May 11, 2014 - Independence Referendum in Donetsk[28]
And, finally, a day came when the situation developed to the point where we understood that the circle around the city had closed, and that the tactical plan of the enemy is not to attack us, but to simply level the city, destroy it with artillery and then run down our infantry with tanks. We understood that we lacked sufficient weaponry to defend against such tactics. Seriously lacked. We also understood that the enemy would simply exterminate us over the course of several days, without us being able to inflict corresponding losses...
July 4, 2014 - Ukrainian Military convoy near Slavyansk[29]
"Is the city of Donetsk ready, at this time, to defend against a prolonged siege, and, in time, for an offensive?" asked the host, who received this response:
Well, certainly, I cannot say that the city is ready for defence, if only because the city as a whole is still operating as if it were at peacetime... As for the armoured columns of the enemy, which is now massively employing tanks and artillery, at this time, the city can defend against them only with great difficulty and at the cost of significant casualties among the militia. However, we are taking urgent measures, on a daily basis, so as to ensure that the city is ready for battle. This is from the standpoint of erecting fortifications. With respect to the mood of the population, it is certainly apparent that the residents of Donetsk continue to lead entirely peaceful lives.
They are still having difficulty understanding, or they refuse to believe that it can happen where the enemy, the Ukrainian punitive units, will unleash a massive artillery barrage and conduct massive airstrikes against residential areas. Well, we also did not believe it for a long time. However, over the course of one month, or, more precisely, three months of being sieged, but one month of an active siege, we became convinced that the enemy has chosen the tactic not of acting against our armed units, the self-defence units of the militia, but a terrorist tactic of destruction - the destruction of infrastructure, the destruction of industrial enterprises.
June 8, 2014 - Artillery Shelling of Slavyansk[30]
However strange it may seem, and I do not find it strange at all, though some may, the primary targets subjected to strikes in Slavyansk and Kramatorsk were not the positions of the militia, though they were perfectly well known, and not even the city districts, but factories and industrial enterprises... In other words, the purpose we are talking about here was not to clear the militia from the city. That was not their intention. Their intention was to cause maximum possible destruction to the infrastructure while clearing the militia out, thereby leaving people without jobs, without housing, without necessities of life. In effect, to fulfil the task of forcing people into an exodus, by leaving them without the means to survive even following the cessation of hostilities.
I am firmly of the opinion that the current Ukrainian leadership and the leadership of the Ukrainian army will not shy away from doing the same to Donetsk. No one should have any illusions - even if we were to withdraw from here, they will not allow the residents of Donetsk to continue living here. The so-called United Europe does not want any competition from the Donetsk industry. They do not wish any competition from (our) scientists. All they want to remain here is a territory where they can source several hundred thousand or maybe even a few million units of cheap workforce, so as to put them to use in Europe. This is all that they want.
June 27, 2014 - Poroshenko signs the EU Association Agreement[31]
"And the shale gas, of course," added Pavel Gubarev, who was introduced as the head of the DPR People's Militia.
"What happened today at the Coal Mine # 21 at Pokrovka?" the host asked Strelkov.
"A Su-25 aircraft attacked and fired eight rockets at what they thought to be the positions of one of our detachments. But it missed."
"And can you comment on the military situation at the city of Snezhnoye and at Saur-Mogilla? How are our militiamen holding up there?"
Strelkov replied:
They are holding well. A joint detachment is stationed there. First, I would like to mention that Battalion Vostok is stationed there, headed up by a sufficiently competent commander. He completely arranged his fighters, enabling them to continue to hold this key position with minimal casualties. I believe that we will continue to hold Snezhnoye and areas in the vicinity. Substantial reinforcements have been directed there. We will not allow the enemy to achieve a breakthrough in the direction of the Don River, cutting off the corridor that now connects us to the Lugansk Region."So we have coordination with Lugansk at the moment?" asked the host.
"There is nothing to brag about at the moment. Our coordination is weak, but it is progressively getting better."
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