Not Ukrainians in that several of the weapons' systems being used in the Ukraine by the 'insurgents' where supplied, staffed, trained and operated by Vlad and the Impalers (Soviet military). The Guided missile system that brought down the airliner (and other Ukrainian planes) is rarely if ever simply provided by entities like Russian and the US without providing trainers, operators and maintenance for a protracted period of time.
Vlad may have sent in Ukrainian born/bred military experts, but these individuals were Russian soldiers. That's what I meant by 'not Ukrainian."
This is the same reason the US balks at providing the types of weapons' systems the Ukraine wants in fighting Russia. These are complex 'systems' - not an individual point and shoot weapon - that require a lot of sophisticated stuff to make them happen, such as software, hardware, training, support, maintenance, etc. Vlad didn't simply give these things to the Ukrainian insurgents or natives to play with. The US has very good intel as to who staffed and operated these weapons' systems. It is almost a certainty that the US has fixed satellites and other intel gathering systems, including HUMINT, along these borders for the foreseeable future. Vlad can't likely go to the potty without Obama knowing about it.
Orphan Crow - I don't mean to be mean but your question is a 30 second google search.
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/world/europe/article4028220.ece
http://themoscownews.com/news/20100205/55409476.html
All of these sites, and there are many like them, refer to "Old Guard' in the same manner - they are the older generation who came up through the military, society and especially the KGB/Communist Politburo/Political organizations in the same manner as Vlad, who as I have pointed out is KGB trained and bred. Typically they pine to be back in the USSR. If you are truly a Russophile, you would have known this.