U.S. President Barack Obama reaffirmed his commitment to defend other NATO states under what is known as Article 5 of the alliance's charter. He spoke at a news conference in Tallinn with Estonian President Toomas Ilves. In reaction to Russia's military actions in Ukraine, NATO's secretary-general recently announced that alliance troop rotations in Central and Eastern Europe would be carried out at "very high frequency" to deter "any potential aggressor." (Video by Reuters)
This just in from our News Desk on the Ukrainian "cease-fire":
Ukraine and Russia said their presidents have discussed steps toward a possible cease-fire in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists are fighting government troops, while U.S. President Barack Obama said a truce could only work if Russia stopped "pretending" it was not involved in the conflict.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko issued a statement on September 3 saying Poroshenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin had reached agreement on a permanent cease-fire in eastern Ukraine.
Later, however, it replaced that statement with one that said the two presidents had agreed "on a cease-fire regime."
Putin's spokesman said they had discussed potential steps but denied any deal had been reached, saying Russia "is not a participant in the conflict."
Obama, on a visit to Estonia on September 3, spoke of Russian "aggression against Ukraine" and reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to the security of Eastern European NATO allies.
As pro-Russian separatists made advances against Ukrainian forces near Donetsk, residents of the southeastern port city of Mariupol some 100 kilometers from the provincial capital took part in combat training offered by members of Ukraine's Azov volunteer battalion. Trainees said they were prepared to wage a "partisan war" if the rebel forces were to reach their city. (Video by RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service)
Slovakia on September 2 launched a pipeline capable of delivering natural gas from the European Union to Ukraine. Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, and Klaus-Dieter Borchardt, director for energy markets at the European Commission, attended the ceremony in the Slovak town of Velke Kapusany. The pipeline could potentially supply up to 20 percent of Ukraine's annual consumption as Kyiv grapples with a halt of Russia supplies ahead of winter. (Video by Reuters)
Workers cleared an abandoned Ukrainian checkpoint near the village of Olenivka in the Donetsk region on September 2. Remains of armored vehicles were scattered across the road at the checkpoint, situated en route from Donetsk to the southeastern port city of Mariupol. The Ukrainian army used Olenivka as a base for attacks on separatist forces in Donetsk, the provincial capital just about 25 kilometers away, but was forced out by the pro-Russian rebel fighters. (Video by Reuters)
RFE/RL correspondent Andrei Babitsky went to a rebel base in the village of Pisky near the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk on September 2. One fighter of the Vostok separatist battalion said the pro-Russian rebels have "enough experience and ammunition" to seize parts of the Donetsk region that are under Ukrainian control. (Video by RFE/RL's Moldova Service)
Today's situation map from the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council:
