It is possible to coordinate with Kiev the issue of
holding elections in Donbass but too early to speak of dates.
MOSCOW, May 31. /TASS/. Coordination of local elections
in the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk republics (DPR and LPR) with Kiev is
possible but it is premature to name any concrete dates for now, DPR’s envoy to
the Contact Group Denis Pushilin said on Tuesday.
"There is theoretically a chance to coordinate with
Kiev the issue of holding elections in Donbass but we cannot yet talk about any
dates," Donetsk News Agency quoted Pushilin as saying. "Ukraine’s
position is manifested in dragging the process, and this is openly admitted by
Ayvazovskaya (Ukraine’s expert in the Contact Group’s political subgroup Olga
Ayvazovskaya)," he added.
Pushilin stressed that DPR is not interested in
"elections for the sake of elections." Voting in Donbass should
adhere to the Package of measures on the implementation of the Minsk
Agreements, he noted. "We now have a task set by the head of the republic
to hold primaries, it will be a kind of training. If you compare with military
events, we did not have any time for drills - the war started right away. In
the political sphere, we have time to hold such drills," he concluded.
DPR head Alexander Zakharchenko said earlier that
primaries will be held in all districts of Donetsk in September-October 2016.
If they prove to be successful, primaries will also be organized in other
cities and towns. The DPR head also noted that local elections may take place
at the end of 2016 or the first half of 2017.
Source: ITAR-TASS 31-05-2016
