Kyiv says its troops have captured 10 Russian paratroopers on Ukrainian soil. The Ukraine authorities claim the soldiers from the 98th Airborne Division were seized near the Ukrainian village of Dzerkalne, about 50 kilometers southeast of the rebel-held city of Donetsk. RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service has published videos of interrogations with the purported prisoners here (natural sound, no subtitles).
Awful, public abuse of a woman in Donetsk, witnessed by @ARothNYT http://t.co/Lo7H75Agjv
— Glenn Kates (@gkates) August 26, 2014
Maybe now that @nytimes has published something like this, there might be more clarity about where the fascism is? http://t.co/DWkOS2ni7w
— CatherineFitzpatrick (@catfitz) August 26, 2014
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: On Independence Day, #Ukrainie's flag flies in unexpected places http://t.co/ytXyB5pxYe
— Kyiv Post (@KyivPost) August 26, 2014
Good morning. We'll start today's live blog with this update from RFE/RL's news desk:
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Russian President Vladmir Putin are among leaders gathering today for a summit in Minsk.
The meeting comes amid heightened tension between Kyiv and Moscow over a pro-Russian insurgency in Ukraine’s east.
The summit of the Russian-led Customs Union will also be attended by Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka, President Nursultan Nazarbaev of Kazakhstan, and European Union officials.
Maja Kocijancic, a spokeswoman for EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, told RFE/RL in Brussels that the talks are "an opportunity for discussions on how to create conditions that would be conducive for the political solution for the crisis."
The Kremlin did not rule out Putin and Poroshenko holding direct talks, but would not confirm a bilateral meeting.
The two leaders last met briefly in France in early June at ceremonies to mark the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the meeting offers an opportunity for "an exchange of opinions about the state of the efforts to begin a political process aimed at resolving the crisis in Ukraine."
But Lavrov said EU representatives should not treat the talks as "a fight for Ukraine against Russia."
The EU and United States have imposed sanctions on Russia for its failure to rein in the separatists. Russia has hit back by banning most Western food imports.
On August 25, Poroshenko dissolved Ukraine's parliament and announced snap elections for October 26.
In a televised address, he said many current members of parliament were backers of ousted President Viktor Yanukovych.
He said a new parliament was needed to remove deputies who were blocking reform.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's security service said its troops had captured 10 Russian paratroopers on Ukrainian soil.
It said the soldiers from the 98th Airborne Division were seized near the Ukrainian village of Dzerkalne, about 50 kilometers southeast of the rebel-held city of Donetsk.
It also said the soldiers were being questioned as part of a criminal probe.
Earlier on August 25, Ukraine's Army said Russian forces disguised as separatist fighters had crossed from Russia with 10 tanks and two armored personnel carriers and had been heading toward the southeastern port of Mariupol.
The military said Ukrainian border guards engaged in combat against the column and stopped it outside Novoazovsk on the Azov Sea.
Kyiv has long accused Moscow of supporting the rebels in Ukraine.
Russia denies the allegation and says Ukraine's military campaign against the separatists is causing a humanitarian crisis.
U.S. National Security Adviser Susan Rice warned of a "significant escalation" in the conflict, saying on Twitter late on August 25: "Repeated Russian incursions into Ukraine unacceptable. Dangerous and inflammatory."
According to the United Nations, more than 2,000 people have been killed and about 340,000 forced to flee their homes in eastern Ukraine as a result of the conflict.
(AFP, Reuters, BBC)
We are now closing the live blog for today. You can keep up with all our ongoing Ukraine coverage here.
The wires and RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service have just confirmed that last tweet:
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has signed a decree dissolving Ukraine’s parliament.
The move on August 25 paves the way for new elections in Ukraine, with a date scheduled for October 26.
Poroshenko announced the move on his official Twitter account, saying: “I have decided to prematurely end the authority of parliament.”
Under Ukrainian law, the election must be held within 60 days of the decree being officially published.
(RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service; Reuters; Interfax)
#Ukraine president Petro Poroshenko has dissolved the Verkhovna Rada, a step toward new parliamentary elections: http://t.co/sE71jRqRdo
— Matthew Kupfer (@Matthew_Kupfer) August 25, 2014
Today Lithuanian honorary consul killed in Lugansk M. Zeleneca was awarded star of Lithuanian diplomacy.
— Linas Linkevicius (@LinkeviciusL) August 25, 2014
TT @mark_feygin Nadia #Savchenko was captured by Luhansk [separatists] before Russian journalists were killed.Totally innocent person jailed
— Myroslava Petsa (@myroslavapetsa) August 25, 2014
RFE/RL's news desk has just issued this update concerning the situation in southeastern Ukraine:
Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko has told European Union officials that he is "extremely concerned" about a deployment of Russian tanks into southeastern Ukraine and the Kremlin's threat to send another unmonitored military convoy into the country with what Moscow claims is "humanitarian aid."
Poroshenko made the complaint a day before he, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, and Russian President Vladimir Putin were due to meet in Minsk.
Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko says Russian forces disguised as separatist fighters crossed into southeast Ukraine on August 25 with 10 tanks and two armored infantry vehicles.
Lysenko said Ukrainian border guards engaged in combat against the armored column and stopped it outside Novoazovsk on the Azov Sea.
Kyiv's allegations were dismissed by Moscow.
The Minsk talks on August 26 are meant to focus on a natural gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine.
The Kremlin has not ruled out a bilateral meeting between Poroshenko and Putin.
(Reuters, Interfax)