KYIV. Aug 28 (Interfax) - Batkivshchyna party leader Yulia Tymoshenko has proposed urgently enacting martial law in Ukraine.
"Three top priority steps need to be taken. First, it is necessary to immediately declare martial law in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. This measure will help seriously reinforce our defense systems and better coordinate our efforts," Tymoshenko told reporters in Kyiv on Thursday.
The second step is to urgently establish the General Headquarters, which would allow Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to assume control of the country's defense mechanisms, she said.
"Third, it is necessary to convene an emergency session of the Verkhovna Rada and confirm the enactment of martial law in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions," Tymoshenko said.
The Ukrainian parliament should ask the governments and people of different countries to extend military assistance to Ukraine, she said.
Tymoshenko also pledged that her team would "stand by the president and the Ukrainian leadership" as far as the country's defense is concerned.