10:33
18.6.2014
#Poroshenko: '#Ukraine is in a state of war. This is a new type of warfare–with use of professional subversive groups, mercenaries.'
— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) June 18, 2014
10:28
18.6.2014
Following the deaths of two Russian journalists yesterday in the Luhansk region, the Kremlin-funded RT network has issued this video in which Moscow's UN envoy Vitaly Churkin says conditions for journalists in eastern Ukraine are now worse than in Iraq:
10:17
18.6.2014
Crimean Tatar leader Mustafa Dzhemilev's son, Khaiser, is still awaiting arms-trafficking charges in Crimea. his father has told RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service that he feels his son is being "held hostage." You can read the entire article in Ukrainian here.
09:52
18.6.2014
Russian Railways invites you to go to Crimea! But its trains can only take you as far as Krasnodar or Anapa: pic.twitter.com/T6cNKJkxr1
— Howard Amos (@howardamos) June 18, 2014
09:43
18.6.2014
Yatsenyuk orders to tighten security of Ukrainian gas transport system http://t.co/tFbA54SeJw
— Kyiv Post (@KyivPost) June 18, 2014
08:16
18.6.2014
Good morning, starting up the live blog for another day.
The main news this morning:
* Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have spoken about a possible cease-fire in eastern Ukraine where Ukrainian forces have been clashing with pro-Russian separatists.
* Poroshenko and Putin also discussed the deaths announced earlier on June 17 of two Russian state television journalists. The Russian Foreign Ministry said the deaths demonstrated the "criminal nature" of Ukraine's military operation against pro-Russian rebels and urged authorities in Kyiv to investigate.
The main news this morning:
* Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have spoken about a possible cease-fire in eastern Ukraine where Ukrainian forces have been clashing with pro-Russian separatists.
* Poroshenko and Putin also discussed the deaths announced earlier on June 17 of two Russian state television journalists. The Russian Foreign Ministry said the deaths demonstrated the "criminal nature" of Ukraine's military operation against pro-Russian rebels and urged authorities in Kyiv to investigate.
21:34
17.6.2014
That concludes the live blogging for tonight.
18:56
17.6.2014
18:06
17.6.2014
From our news desk:
Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said officials are looking into several possible reasons for the explosion of a gas pipeline but that terrorism or sabotage was one of the "key" theories.
Avakov said local residents reported hearing two small explosions just before the huge blast that ruptured the gas pipeline.
The explosion happened in Ukraine's Poltavksa Oblast that borders the eastern regions of Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk and is near the Donetsk and Luhansk regions where pro-Russian separatists have been battling Ukrainian government forces for several weeks.
The blast occurred along the Urengoy-Pomory-Uzhgorod pipeline that can transport some 29 billion cubic meters of gas annually from Russia into Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania, where it feeds into pipelines going further into Europe.
Gazprom and Ukraine's pipeline operator Ukrtransgaz both said the suspension of gas supplies along that pipeline would not affect supplies headed to Europe.
Avakov said local residents reported hearing two small explosions just before the huge blast that ruptured the gas pipeline.
The explosion happened in Ukraine's Poltavksa Oblast that borders the eastern regions of Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk and is near the Donetsk and Luhansk regions where pro-Russian separatists have been battling Ukrainian government forces for several weeks.
The blast occurred along the Urengoy-Pomory-Uzhgorod pipeline that can transport some 29 billion cubic meters of gas annually from Russia into Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania, where it feeds into pipelines going further into Europe.
Gazprom and Ukraine's pipeline operator Ukrtransgaz both said the suspension of gas supplies along that pipeline would not affect supplies headed to Europe.
17:06
17.6.2014
Hmmm....