The conclusion of a memorandum between the management of enterprises and the authorities of Mariupol with representatives of illegal armed formations of the ‘DPR’ in May 2014 was a forced step that allowed to stop the outrages in the town, Illich Steel Mill ex-CEO, head of the executive committee of the Oleh Liashko Radical Party, Yuriy Zinchenko (one of the signers of the document), has said.
“It was written in black and white in the memorandum: disarming of any illegal formations. And then everyone clearly understood that we were talking about armed separatists. We’ve forgotten about that now, haven’t we? We wanted to restore peace and order to the city. And we did it,” he said an exclusive interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
Recalling the events of that time, Zinchenko explained that in Mariupol in May 2014 the “bandits and looters” tried to take power into their own hands.
According to him, armed people seized and set buildings on fire, robbed shops, and intimidated local residents.
“It became dangerous to go out in the streets. The municipal services, public transport, grocery stores – nothing worked. And the town-forming enterprises were threatened to be seized. The city plunged into chaos,” the former head of the plant said.
After signing the memorandum, according to Zinchenko, unarmed members of voluntary public order squads came out to patrol the city. And during the first day the riots ceased. He also noted that the enterprises had provided support to the Ukrainian security forces.
He also said that all this time the Ukrainian flags were flying above the entrance checkpoints of the work shops and the plant.
As reported, on May 2014, Illich Iron and Steel Works of Mariupol general director Yuriy Zinchenko, Azovstal Iron and Steel Works general director Enver Tskitishvili, Mariupol Mayor Yuriy Khotlubei, the city’s acting police chief Oleh Morhun, members of Mariupol public organizations, and the leader of ‘Donetsk People’s Republic’ supporters, Denys Kuzmenko, signed a memorandum pledging order and security in the city.
The initiative to sign such a document belonged to the heads of Illich Iron and Steel Works, Azovstal and the voluntary people’s patrol headquarters in the city.
The memorandum documents joint initiatives to maintain social security in Mariupol and contains proposals to the Ukrainian authorities, it said.
