A pro-Russian separatist leader was sworn in on Tuesday as the head of a self-proclaimed ‘people’s republic’ in eastern Ukraine in a ceremony that worsened a standoff with Russia. Alexander Zakharchenko, who was elected in a rogue vote on Sunday that was denounced as a “farce” by Kiev and illegitimate by the West, took the oath to “honestly serve the interests of the people of the Donetsk People’s Republic and conscientiously fulfil my duties.” Before the ceremony, which took place in a drama theatre in Donetsk, a big industrial city and the separatists’ stronghold, another separatist figure, Andrei Purgin, said: …read more
Source: Egypt Independent
