08:16
19.6.2014
08:08
19.6.2014
Newly elected Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko runs his first city council session today. Euromaidaners are protesting outside.
08:04
19.6.2014
Interfax reports (and a look at the ministry's website confirms) that Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Minister Yuriy Prodan and Naftogaz CEO Andriy Kobolev discussed possible reverse gas flows and other topics with Hungarian Foreign Minister Tibor Navracsics and National Development Minister Miklos Sesztak when they met yesterday on the sidelines of an energy-security forum in Budapest.
The ministry says "the parties agreed on the advisability of increasing gas supplies to Ukraine in Hungary."
The ministry says "the parties agreed on the advisability of increasing gas supplies to Ukraine in Hungary."
07:50
19.6.2014
07:47
19.6.2014
07:42
19.6.2014
And on the UN OHCHR's new report on "the breakdown of law and order in the areas held by armed groups" via our newsroom:
UN monitors in eastern Ukraine say they've recorded a steady rise in killing, tortures, and abductions by pro-Russian armed groups.
UN Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights Ivan Simonovic said "a climate of lawlessness prevails in the east."
According to a fresh report, at least 356 people, including 86 Ukrainian soldiers, have been killed in the past month.
The document largely covers the period from May 7 to June 7 and is the third to be produced by the 34-strong UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission since it was deployed to Ukraine in March.
UN human rights chief Navi Pillay said that a "climate of insecurity and fear" has displaced 34,000 people, nearly half in Ukraine's eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, which have declared independence from Kyiv.
Pillay urged pro-Russian armed groups in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions to “stop taking themselves, and the people living in their regions, down this dead end.”
Simonovic said the government reported that armed groups in the east had abducted 387 people in the east from April to June 7, including 39 journalists.
UN monitors, however, were able to confirm only 222 abductions, including four people who have been killed, 137 who have been released, and 81 who remain in detention.
Simonovic also noted a rise in reports of enforced disappearances and excessive use of force during Ukrainian government security operations "that have led to casualties among civilians, which we continue to investigate."
Simonovic told a briefing on the report at the International Peace Institute in New York on June 18 that representatives of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic have for the first time admitted that among their fighters are some volunteers from Russia, most from Chechnya or Cossacks.
The OHCHR report also notes that Crimea residents "known for their 'pro-Ukrainian' position are intimidated" and adds that leaders and activists of the indigenous Crimean Tatars face prosecution and limitations on the enjoyment of their cultural rights.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said the report presents a "one-sided and politically biased interpretation of events."
He called a recommendation that Ukrainian authorities should carry out antiterrorist operations "in accordance with international standards" hypocritical and outrageous.
Simonovic said the UN is not "neutral" on human rights because it always sides with victims and against perpetrators.
UN Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights Ivan Simonovic said "a climate of lawlessness prevails in the east."
According to a fresh report, at least 356 people, including 86 Ukrainian soldiers, have been killed in the past month.
The document largely covers the period from May 7 to June 7 and is the third to be produced by the 34-strong UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission since it was deployed to Ukraine in March.
UN human rights chief Navi Pillay said that a "climate of insecurity and fear" has displaced 34,000 people, nearly half in Ukraine's eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, which have declared independence from Kyiv.
Pillay urged pro-Russian armed groups in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions to “stop taking themselves, and the people living in their regions, down this dead end.”
Simonovic said the government reported that armed groups in the east had abducted 387 people in the east from April to June 7, including 39 journalists.
UN monitors, however, were able to confirm only 222 abductions, including four people who have been killed, 137 who have been released, and 81 who remain in detention.
Simonovic also noted a rise in reports of enforced disappearances and excessive use of force during Ukrainian government security operations "that have led to casualties among civilians, which we continue to investigate."
Simonovic told a briefing on the report at the International Peace Institute in New York on June 18 that representatives of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic have for the first time admitted that among their fighters are some volunteers from Russia, most from Chechnya or Cossacks.
The OHCHR report also notes that Crimea residents "known for their 'pro-Ukrainian' position are intimidated" and adds that leaders and activists of the indigenous Crimean Tatars face prosecution and limitations on the enjoyment of their cultural rights.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said the report presents a "one-sided and politically biased interpretation of events."
He called a recommendation that Ukrainian authorities should carry out antiterrorist operations "in accordance with international standards" hypocritical and outrageous.
Simonovic said the UN is not "neutral" on human rights because it always sides with victims and against perpetrators.
07:36
19.6.2014
From our newsroom:
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has said the United States will work with allies to "impose further costs on Russia" if Moscow fails to use its influence to stop separatist violence in eastern Ukraine.
The White House says Biden made the comment to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in a telephone conversation yesterday.
Biden said Russia has failed to stop sending weapons and militants across the border.
Biden also commended Poroshenko for his commitment to move ahead with his peace plan and for other measures to unify the crisis-ridden country.
The new president of Ukraine is proposing a unilateral cease-fire after two months of fighting and promises a safe exit for pro-Russian armed separatists.
The White House says Biden made the comment to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in a telephone conversation yesterday.
Biden said Russia has failed to stop sending weapons and militants across the border.
Biden also commended Poroshenko for his commitment to move ahead with his peace plan and for other measures to unify the crisis-ridden country.
The new president of Ukraine is proposing a unilateral cease-fire after two months of fighting and promises a safe exit for pro-Russian armed separatists.
17:52
18.6.2014
That concludes our live blogging for Wednesday, June 18.
17:36
18.6.2014
Ukrainian authorities announce arrest of the "head" of the "Donetsk People's Republic" in Mariupol -- "Baba Natasha."
17:14
18.6.2014
A member of Ukraine's National Guard complains in an interview with RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service about a lack of proper military planning as troops fight in the country's east. The soldier, who wished to remain anonymous and whose voice has been altered for this video, pleaded with the government to provide more professional support for Ukrainian military operations.
