-- The UN General Assembly has passed a resolution that affirms Ukraine's territorial integrity.
-- The IMF has announced "a staff-level agreement" with Kyiv on assistance of $14 billion-$18 billion in conjunction with a reform program that will "unlock" up to $27 billion over the next two years, pending final approval next month. Tthe U.S. Congress has also passed an aid bill for Ukraine.
-- Ex-PM Yulia Tymoshenko has announced plans to run for president.
-- Members of the Right Sector have been holding a demonstration outside the Ukrainian parliament building to vent their anger at the killing of prominent member Oleksander Muzychkoearlier in the week.
-- Six Ukrainian military officers detained by pro-Russian troops in Crimea have been released, including Colonel Yuliy Mamchur, but five others are still being held captive.
-- Anonymous sources quoted by CNN say U.S. intelligence "concludes it is more likely than previously thought that Russian forces will enter eastern Ukraine."
-- U.S. President Barack Obama, in the keynote speech of his visit to Europe, chided Russia for its use of "brute force" in Ukraine and vowed that a determined alliance of the United States and Europe will prevail over time.
*NOTE: Times are stated according to local time in Kyiv
Reports are still pouring in about the purported arrest of Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash in Austria.
Vienna police spokesman Mario Hejl confirmed to RFE/RL that a Ukrainian businessman identified as Dmitry F. had been detained in the city on March 12 but said he could not give his surname "due to data protection."
He said the Vienna police carried out the arrest "for U.S. authorities," which have been investigating Firtash since 2006. The oligarch is suspected of bribery and forming a criminal organization.
"He is in the hands of the Austrian judiciary, in Vienna, in a relevant detention center," Hejl told RFE/RL. "The rest will be decided by justice."
Firtash, one of Ukraine's richest men, has close links to Russia and to ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych. He has been involved in the gas, chemicals, media, banking, and real estate sectors.
A number of European institutions have received donations from Firtash, including Britain's Cambridge University. He is a member of the university's Guild of Benefactors.
14:2013.3.2014
Ukrainians held a (mostly) silent protest in Simferopol today to protest Russian-imposed censorship and restrictions on media and speech and to demand a Russian withdrawal, standing with tape over their mouths and holding blank sheets of paper.
These latest comments from Putin have come in on the wires:
Russian President Vladimir Putin has told Paralympic athletes that Moscow is not to blame for the crisis in Crimea.
At a meeting with Paralympic delegations in Sochi, Putin thanked officials for keeping politics out of the Winter Paralympics, which are being hosted by Russia and end on March 16.
Putin did not name Ukraine but said he was referring to the "complicated circumstances which you all know about very well."
"I would like to stress that Russia was not the initiator of the circumstances that we are now facing," he added. (AP, Reuters, Interfax)
13:4613.3.2014
Despite huge line at a Simferopol branch of Oshad Bank, it's calm and people not panicking. Limit 3000UAH, regular amount. #Crimea
Abkhazia, Georgia's Russian-backed breakaway region, says it's ready to dispatch observers to Crimea to monitor the March 16 referendum.
Valery Bganba, the speaker of Abkhazia's parliament, told Interfax the legislature had already formed a group of lawmakers (!) willing to monitor Crimea's referendum on joining Russia.
12:4313.3.2014
Russian Military Holds More Exercises Near Ukrainian Border
The Russian military is conducting exercises in its Southern Military District near Ukraine.
Russia's Defense Ministry said today that some 8,500 troops would take part in the drills, which include artillery and multiple-rocket launchers.
According to the Defense Ministry's website, the exercise is aimed at coordinating actions between artillery, mechanized and tank units, paratroopers, and marines.
The Defense Ministry said the exercises were already under way and that half the drills would be conducted at night.
There was no information about how long the exercises would last.
The exercise follows previous Russian military exercises near the Ukrainian border that ended on March 4.
Russia denied any link between the first exercises and the Ukraine crisis.
12:3813.3.2014
"The Washington Post" says seven U.S. senators plan to visit Ukraine this weekend to hold talks with the country's news leadership:
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who is leading the delegation, confirmed to reporters that he and "a large number" of senators of both parties would be making the trip. He declined to give names, but the full delegation includes McCain and Sens. John Barasso (R-Wyo.), Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Christopher Murphy (D-Conn.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), according to aides familiar with the plans.
Ukraine's political leaders reportedly invited McCain and other senators to come and show support for their country in its standoff with Russia.
12:3613.3.2014
OECD Postpones Russia Membership Process
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) says it's postponing the process for Russia to join the organization.
The OECD said in a written statement that it was postponing activities toward Russia’s membership "at the request" of the organization’s member nations.
The statement also said OECD members had agreed to strengthen cooperation with Ukraine to help Kyiv address "public policy challenges."
No further details about cooperation with Ukraine, which is not an OECD member, were given.
The Paris-based OECD's membership includes 34 mostly Western, economically advanced countries.
In 2007, the OECD invited Russia to start talks on possible membership.
Accession involves meeting the OECD's economic and social development policy standards.
12:1813.3.2014
Young Crimeans graduating from school this year will be able to enroll in Russian universities without entrance exams.
Lifenews quotes Viktor Ohanesyan, the head of Sevastopol's education and science department, as saying even students with poor grades will be able to study in Russia.
"Of course, the conservatory is not going to accept 2,000 students, and a '2' grade doesn't get you into the Moscow State University," he said. "But Rossotrudnichestvo and the education ministry promised us that absolutely all graduates, not only those with the best results, will be accepted in Russian universities on the basis of an interview."
