On June 11, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko fired General Oleksandr Kikhtenko as governor of Donetsk province, roughly half of which is controlled by Moscow-backed militants. Like his predecessor, local steel tycoon Serhy Taruta, who was ditched last fall and elected to parliament from Mariupol (Mariupil), Kikhtenko apparently proved to be too independent-minded for Kyiv. In particular, he opposed the economic blockade of the rebel-held areas, staged by the central authorities. However, the replacement appointed by Poroshenko, moderate nationalist politician Pavlo Zhebrivsky, said in one of his very first interviews that he would not blindly obey orders either. Zhebrivsky will also …read more
Source: The Jamestown Foundation
