The Situation in the Ukraine. #3

As Sa'iqa wrote:FP, can you find some info about the economic condition of Western vs Eastern Ukraine? Which is richer?

I can tell you right now that the east is richer and better developed; they tend to be donors to the central budget while the western regions tend to be recipients.

Out of the 10 biggest cities in the Ukraine; 8 are in eastern Ukraine (Kharkov, Odessa, Dnepropetrovsk, Donetsk, Zaporozhia, Krivoy Rog, Nikolayev and Mariupol).

Among them are such centres of industry and production as Kharkov, Dnepropetrovsk, Donetsk and Zaporozhia.

Odessa is a large city with a diversified economy, a large port and constant transit, serving as the main sea trade hub of the Ukraine - it has a lot of tourism too.
Then you also have Nikolayev - which has fallen greatly from its Soviet days but still has some shipbuilding and enterprises related to the defense industry, as well as electronics and various machinery.
Krivoy Rog is basically the metallurgical capital of the Ukraine; also with some machine-building, chemical industries.
Mariupol is also a metallurgical centre and a port too.

- EU is planning to cancel tarrifs on Ukrainian goods on the 23rd of April.
...by then there might not even be a country left.

Now, real news:

- The Italian foreign ministry informs that additional economic sanctions against Russia are not being discussed.
- Romania is unable or unwilling to help the Ukraine with gas supplies
- The town of Zurges has come under the control of the DPR; protestors have seized the administration building there.
- The town of Khartsyzsk looks set to follow, there was an anti-Maidan rally of up to 3-4 thousand people there by some estimates (town has 60,000 population) although it might be exagerrated. Either way, the mayor is being called upon to side with the protestors and the DPR http://vognebroda.net/storonniki-federalizatsii-v-hartsyzske-donetskoy-oblasti-prizyvayut-mera-goroda-pereyti-na-storonu-protestuyushchih
- New mayor elected in Mariupol by protestors, all buildings seem to be occupied now.
- Loads of reports about more Kiev-loyal reinforcements arriving outside Slavyansk, including armour units, artillery and some formations from the newly formed national guard are on their way too. Meanwhile, anti-Kiev reinforcements have arrived to Slavyansk; seems those 50-60 people volunteers from Lugansk at least, but it looks like there is another group at least two - rumoured to be Berkut from somewhere. Some footage of new arrivals (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQjJ5rWzlSY).
The mayor of the town seems to have either fled or stepped aside, a new interim mayor has been appointed. Apparently some firefights have already taken place on the outskirts, administration buildings in outlying villages have been burnt down.
Basically, there is huge internal pressure on the government right now from Pravyj Sektor and other radicals to take action - so it seems like they will go in.
Slavyansk is reportedly being stormed only by western & central Ukrainian units: http://russian.rt.com/article/27576#ixzz2yl2Vh3eZ
- No reliable information about the 25th air-assault brigade; the head of the Ukrainian airborne forces have denied that they have switched sides. Here's the news piece where it was claimed that they did: http://russian.rt.com/article/27712
- Ukrainian airborne unit got turned around in Krasnoarmejsk yesterday. They probably just found another route though

- Yatsenyuk fired Antonov's boss yesterday. Guess he just told him what he didn't want to hear, about how Antonov can't survive w/o Russia etc..
- Ukraine is threatening to close the border with Russia. Might be hard though, according to one source - these guys are defected Ukr border guards troops:

- The now ex-Ukrainian SBU head, Alexander Yakimenko - is claiming that the new SBU head (Nalivajchenko) has links with the CIA.
- Things might get bloody in Odessa. As I'm sure some have seen the vids already, there is a growing pro-Russian 'druzhina' in the city, which is armed with shields, helmets, armour, clubs, etc... which has been kicking the ass of the Euromaidan self-defense forces there who are armed the same way. Now the Euromaidan activists in the city are announcing that they are 'arming themselves', whatever that means.
- Kiev, and Ukraine in general is basically getting taken over by bandits. This is because the Kiev authorties are authorising more and more armed groups; the National Guard, then Avakov's call for new police units formed from civilian armed groups numbering up to 12,000, and now Timoshenko is calling for the formation of a 'people's movement' called "resistance". This is in addition to the existing groups, which arming themselves more and taking on a key role for the authorities - Maidan self-defense forces, Udar's and Svoboda's own armed activists and of course Pravyj Sektor; which is a rival to the authorities most of the time but against Russia and the eastern rebels at least is united with them.

And everything else I think you guys have seen already; Tsarev beaten and arrested, Pravyj Sektor mob outside the Rada last night (which ended up in a fist-fight over whether to storm the Rada or not), a T-64 being either captured or disarmed in a field, etc...
Well here's Zhirinovsky in the Duma today: