Ukrainians to decide on issue of joining Russia: Lavrov

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Ukrainians will decide themselves on the issue of joining Russia, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday.

"The citizens of Ukraine will determine their own fate. It's up to them, not someone else," Lavrov said at a news conference with his Eritrean counterpart Osman Saleh in Moscow, in response to a question about the possibility of Ukraine's southern regions becoming a part of Russia.

The minister insisted that Ukrainians are "tired" of external management, oppression of all Russians, and the rise of neo-Nazism.

Supporting Moscow, Saleh said the Ukraine crisis was another result of "the reckless policy of containment" against Russia and China that aims to build a unipolar world.

He said many countries, like Ukraine, are used by global powers to achieve their own goals.

"I express my full support for Russia. I hope that Russia and Ukraine will be able to find a bilateral solution," he said.

At least 2,729 civilians have been killed and 3,111 others injured in Ukraine since the war started on Feb. 24, according to UN estimates. The true toll is feared to be much higher.

So far, 7.7 million people in Ukraine have been internally displaced, with more than 5.2 million fleeing to other countries, according to the UN refugee agency.