country would never give up Crimea and
would not compromise on its path
towards closer ties with Europe, using
his inaugural speech on Saturday to
send a defiant message to Russia.
The 48-year-old billionaire took the oath
of office before parliament, buoyed by
Western support but facing an
immediate crisis in relations with Russia
as a separatist uprising seethes in the
east of his country.
Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula
in March, weeks after street protests
ousted Poroshenko's pro-Moscow
predecessor, in a move that has
provoked the deepest crisis in relations
with the West since the Cold War.
"Citizens of Ukraine will never enjoy the
beauty of peace unless we settle down
our relations with Russia. Russia
occupied Crimea, which was, is, and will
be Ukrainian soil," Poroshenko said in a
speech that was greeted with a standing
ovation.
He had told this to Russia's Vladimir
Putin when the two met on Friday at a
World War Two anniversary ceremony in
France, he said.
Poroshenko, who earned his fortune as a
confectionery entrepreneur and is
known locally as the "Chocolate King",
said he intended very soon to sign the
economic part of an association
agreement with the European Union, as
a first step towards full membership.
This idea is anathema to Moscow, which
wants to keep Ukraine in its own post-
Soviet sphere of influence.
His voice swelling with emotion,
Poroshenko stressed the need for a
united Ukraine and the importance of
ending the conflict that threatens to
further split the country of 45 million
people. He said it would not become a
looser federalised state, as advocated
by Russia.
"There can be no trade-off about
Crimea and about the European choice
and about the governmental system. All
other things can be negotiated and
discussed at the negotiation table. Any
attempts at internal or external
enslavement of Ukraine will meet with
resolute resistance,” Poroshenko said.
Cheering crowds later greeted him on a
walkabout in blazing sunshine on the
square in front of Kiev's St Sophia's
Cathedral, which was decked with the
blue and yellow national flag.
EASTERN WAR ZONE
Since Poroshenko's election,
government forces have begun an
intensified campaign against the
separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine who
want to split with Kiev and become part
of Russia.
The rebels have fought back, turning
parts of the east into a war zone. On
Friday they shot down a Ukrainian army
plane and killed a member of the
Interior Ministry's special forces in the
separatist stronghold of Slaviansk, where
residents said shelling continued all day.
Poroshenko urged the pro-Moscow
separatists to lay down their arms and
said he would guarantee a safe corridor
for Russian fighters to go home. "I don't
want war; I don't want revenge. I want
peace and I want peace to happen," he
said. "Please, lay down the guns and I
guarantee immunity to all those who
don't have bloodshed on their hands."
Switching to Russian from Ukrainian to
address the people of the troubled east,
he said they had been duped by myths
about the Kiev leadership which had
been stoked by Russian propaganda.
He said he would soon visit them with
guarantees of Russian-language rights
and proposals for de-centralisation, that
would give their regions a bigger say in
running their own affairs. In the days
leading up to his inauguration,
Poroshenko met both US President
Barack Obama, who warmly endorsed
his leadership, as well as Russia's Putin.
At a brief meeting in France, where they
were attending World War Two
commemorations, French officials said
Poroshenko and Putin shook hands and
agreed that detailed talks on a ceasefire
between Kiev government forces and
the pro-Russian separatists would begin
within a few days.
Russia denounced the overthrow of pro-
Moscow President Viktor Yanukovich and
has accused the Ukrainian authorities of
worsening the crisis in the east by
resorting to military force instead of
dialogue.
It denies accusations by Kiev and
Western governments that it is
supporting the rebels.
Putin told reporters he welcomed
proposals set out by Poroshenko for
ending the conflict. However he
declined to say what they were and said
Ukraine must halt what he called
"punitive" military operations against
pro-Russian separatists.
The two countries are also at odds over
the pricing of Russian natural gas, with
Moscow threatening to cut supplies as
early as next week unless Ukraine
settles its debt, the amount of which is
disputed.
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