What In The World Is Going On In The Russia-Backed Separatist Luhansk 'Republic'?
By Christopher Miller
KYIV -- Residents of separatist-controlled Luhansk awoke on November 21 to an all-too-familiar and distressing scene: masked, heavily armed men on armored vehicles patrolling the streets of the war-wracked eastern Ukrainian city.
It captured the attention of those not only on the ground but in Kyiv and Moscow and beyond. And for good reason: There was something different about it all this time. This was a separatist-against-separatist affair.
So what is going on?
Is It A Coup?
In a nutshell: A power struggle between leaders of the so-called Luhansk "people's republic" is playing out on the city's streets. Some would call it a coup, and it certainly appears to be an attempt at a takeover by Ihor Kornet, the "republic's" top cop, who was dismissed on November 20 by his nemesis, Ihor Plotnitsky, the "republic's" official leader. Both men are native Ukrainians.
The beef between Plotnitsky and Kornet goes way back. Part of it stems from Plotnitsky’s seizure of a large home from Kornet that he had taken for himself in 2014.
The former is said to be the Kremlin's choice for leader, while the latter is believed to be the favorite of Russia's Federal Security Service, the FSB.
Kornet's revolt began on November 21 when men in green believed to be loyal to him seized control of Luhansk's key administrative buildings, patrolled the city center, and reportedly forced Plotnitsky to flee across the border to Russia.
Accounts of Plotnitsky's whereabouts, however, vary. While Ukrainian Interior Ministry spokesman Artem Shevchenko claimed that Plotnitsky had, indeed, escaped to Russia, the separatists' television channel in Luhansk reported on November 22 that Plotnitsky remained in the city. The channel published a video showing Plotnitsky holding a meeting with other de facto authority figures in which he accuses Kornet of "attempting to overthrow the government." It is not clear whether the video was shot in Luhansk.
Some of the drama was captured on camera by the "state-run" news network in Luhansk, GTRK LNR, and it does support claims of a coup:
RFE/RL also managed to obtain footage from Luhansk:
In both videos, gunmen are seen standing guard in the Luhansk city center, which appears to be blocked off by armored vehicles. The scene looks remarkably similar to Russia's takeover of the Crimean Peninsula, right down to the "little green men."