A political commentator says Western meddling has been hindering a peaceful solution to the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.
Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya made the remark in an interview with Press TV from Ottawa on Monday [November 2, 2014].
He said that the “noises” coming out of Washington DC and Brussels will “obstruct a peaceful settlement in Ukraine.”
The analyst also cast doubt on the legitimacy of the recent snap parliamentary elections in Ukraine, saying the restive eastern regions were marginalized and excluded from the votes.
The general elections for Ukraine’s 450-seat Supreme Council, also known as Verkhovna Rada, were held on October 26.
Commenting on the separate elections in Ukraine’s eastern regions on November 2, the analyst said the people of the pro-Russia regions have the right of self-determination and local leaders in Luhansk [Lugansk] and Donetsk enjoy ‘popular support.’
Nazemroaya said the current economic challenges facing Ukraine were caused by the ouster of former President Viktor Yanukovych in February.
Russia seeks peace and stability in the region, and has kept its money and gas flowing into Ukraine in recent years, the analyst concluded.
The mainly Russian-speaking regions in eastern Ukraine have witnessed deadly clashes between pro-Moscow activists and the Ukrainian army since Kiev launched military operations to silence the pro-Russians in mid-April.
Violence intensified in May after the regions of Donetsk and Lugansk held local referendums in which residents voted overwhelmingly in favor of independence from Ukraine.
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