Ukraine denounces Russian plans to hold military exercises on election day

KIEV, Ukraine, May 15 (UPI) -- Ukrainian acting Foreign Minister Andriy Deschytsia responded Thursday to reports that Russia plans to hold military drills on May 25, Ukraine's election day.

The foreign minister criticized Russia for the timing, saying that Russia's decision to conduct military exercises at the same time that Ukrainians vote in presidential elections "will not help stabilize the situation in the eastern regions."

The foreign ministry also posted a statement on its website regarding Russia's "combat use of modern armaments in the immediate vicinity of our borders," asserting that "we qualify these actions by Russia as ... an undisguised attempt to boost tensions on the borders with Ukraine and in the region as a whole."

Russia's planned Aviadarts 2014 exercises are scheduled to take place near Lipetsk, Voronezh, and Ryazan from May 21-25.

In response to the planned exercises and continuing presence of Russian troops near Ukraine's border, Kiev ordered Moscow to "immediately pull the Russian forces away [from] the Ukrainian border and fulfill its commitments under the Geneva agreements ..."