08:42
25.3.2014
08:22
25.3.2014
RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reports that not even the wife of Colonel Yuliy Mamchur, who was "abducted" after Ukraine's Belbek Air Base near Sevastopol was stormed by Russian armored vehicles and troops, knows the senior Ukrainian commander's whereabouts. Officials in Kyiv have demanded his release.
08:17
25.3.2014
Acting Ukrainian President Oleksandr Turchynov's representative in Crimea, Serhiy Kunitsyn, has announced his resignation on live television over perceived inaction by authorities in Kyiv. Kunitsyn, who served as Crimea's prime minister early last decade and was named a presidential representative on February 27, said he was "ashamed" to be associated with the Ukrainian government's retreat in the face of the Russian annexation of Crimea.
08:00
25.3.2014
There are still obstacles to passage, but a Senate bill on aid and loan guarantees and sanctions related to Russian actions in Ukraine has moved closer to debate, according to Reuters:
A bill providing economic assistance to Ukraine and imposing sanctions over Russia's seizure of Crimea cleared a procedural hurdle in the U.S. Senate on Monday, as backers attempted to win passage of the legislation later this week.
By a vote of 78-17, the Senate laid the groundwork for debating a bill that would back a $1 billion loan guarantee for the government in Kiev, provide $150 million in aid for Ukraine and neighboring countries and require sanctions on Russians and Ukrainians responsible for corruption, human rights abuses or undermining stability in Ukraine.
Supporters of the law said Congress should act quickly and forcefully to discourage Russian President Vladimir Putin from moving further into Ukraine or any neighboring countries.
The measure, however, also includes long-delayed reforms to the International Monetary Fund that are opposed by most Republicans in the Senate and House of Representatives, and this has complicated efforts to pass a Ukraine aid bill.
By a vote of 78-17, the Senate laid the groundwork for debating a bill that would back a $1 billion loan guarantee for the government in Kiev, provide $150 million in aid for Ukraine and neighboring countries and require sanctions on Russians and Ukrainians responsible for corruption, human rights abuses or undermining stability in Ukraine.
Supporters of the law said Congress should act quickly and forcefully to discourage Russian President Vladimir Putin from moving further into Ukraine or any neighboring countries.
The measure, however, also includes long-delayed reforms to the International Monetary Fund that are opposed by most Republicans in the Senate and House of Representatives, and this has complicated efforts to pass a Ukraine aid bill.
07:37
25.3.2014
Former U.S. ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul had this to say about the Russia-Ukraine situation in a telephone call with journalists organized by "Foreign Affairs" magazine:
On possible Ukrainian resistance should Putin move Russian forces further into Ukraine:
“Those eastern regions out there are not divided neatly between Russians and Ukrainians on the east and the west. Rather the Russians are concentrated in the big cities, the countryside[s] are surrounded by ethnic Ukrainians. And if he does move in there, I think there will be resistance. … I doubt it’ll be organized military resistance, but you’ll have guerilla warfare for months if not years. And so he’s got to calculate that into his analysis as well.”
On Putin’s view of relations with the West:
“Putin has made it clear that he doesn’t care about what the West thinks.… He’s indifferent to integration. And he’s prepared to pay the costs of going a different direction.”
On Russia’s investment climate amid sanctions and the Crimea crisis:
“The number of individuals I know -- Russians and American -- who are extremely nervous about...investments in Russia is quite...a big number, I’ll just put it at that. So I don’t think anybody is treating this new period with any complacency. I feel a lot of anxiety.”
On the role of long-term support for the Ukrainian government, financially and otherwise:
“If Ukraine falls apart, if they don’t institute governance, if they don’t in some way isolate and marginalize the nondemocratic political forces that are still a part of what’s happening inside Ukraine, then that’ll be a major disaster for Europe and the United States. So, to me, that is the key piece. And I hope people understand the gravity of that.”
“Those eastern regions out there are not divided neatly between Russians and Ukrainians on the east and the west. Rather the Russians are concentrated in the big cities, the countryside[s] are surrounded by ethnic Ukrainians. And if he does move in there, I think there will be resistance. … I doubt it’ll be organized military resistance, but you’ll have guerilla warfare for months if not years. And so he’s got to calculate that into his analysis as well.”
On Putin’s view of relations with the West:
“Putin has made it clear that he doesn’t care about what the West thinks.… He’s indifferent to integration. And he’s prepared to pay the costs of going a different direction.”
On Russia’s investment climate amid sanctions and the Crimea crisis:
“The number of individuals I know -- Russians and American -- who are extremely nervous about...investments in Russia is quite...a big number, I’ll just put it at that. So I don’t think anybody is treating this new period with any complacency. I feel a lot of anxiety.”
On the role of long-term support for the Ukrainian government, financially and otherwise:
“If Ukraine falls apart, if they don’t institute governance, if they don’t in some way isolate and marginalize the nondemocratic political forces that are still a part of what’s happening inside Ukraine, then that’ll be a major disaster for Europe and the United States. So, to me, that is the key piece. And I hope people understand the gravity of that.”
07:14
25.3.2014
21:38
24.3.2014
Barring major developments, we do not expect any more posts for March 24.
21:35
24.3.2014
Our newsroom's summary of the Lavrov-Deshchytsya meeting today on the sidelines of the nuclear summit in The Hague:
Information about the meeting, which the Ukrainian side requested, came out Monday evening.
Minutes after news of the meeting first broke, Russia's ITAR-TASS and Interfax news agencies reported the meeting was over.
Lavrov said he and Deshchytsya discussed "contemporary events and tasks, which...need to be considered in order to overcome the internal Ukrainian crisis."
"A wide-ranging constitutional reform -- and let me stress, with the participation of all regions -- must be launched [in Ukraine]. We cannot impose that on Ukrainian figures. Nevertheless, this is our assessment of the situation that has unfolded there. It will be very difficult to overcome a deep internal crisis in Ukraine without it. This is, by the way, what I told acting Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchitsya who asked me for a meeting. We told him what steps, in our opinion, the leaders appointed by the [Ukrainian] Rada (parliament) ought to take in order to finally establish a proper pan-Ukrainian dialogue."
Lavrov said President Vladimir Putin had instructed him to meet with Deshchytsya.
Ukrainian authorities have been requesting a meeting with Lavrov since the government of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych fell last month and pro-Russian forces occupied areas in Crimea.
The meeting between Lavrov and Deshchytsya was the highest-level meeting between Russian and Ukrainian officials since former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych was chased from power in late February.
Since then pro-Russian forces exerted control over Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and on March 17 a hastily prepared referendum was held to secede from Ukraine and join Russia, sparking the current crisis between Russia and the West, which some have called the greatest threat to security since the Cold War.
Lavrov also met with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Monday and they discussed the situation in Ukraine.
Kerry expressed "strong concern" about the build-up of Russian troops along Ukraine's border.
Kerry called on Russia to defuse the situation and said additional sanctions could be placed on Russia if Moscow continues on its present course.
Lavrov downplayed the significance of Russia's possible expulsion from the G8 group of industrialized nations.
"As to the G8, well, you see, G8 is an informal club. No one hands out membership IDs for it. No one can kick anyone out of it. It may be the case that G8 has already fulfilled its mission -- and this is exactly what many people think because since the creation of G20 it is precisely where all economic and financial issues are being discussed."
Minutes after news of the meeting first broke, Russia's ITAR-TASS and Interfax news agencies reported the meeting was over.
Lavrov said he and Deshchytsya discussed "contemporary events and tasks, which...need to be considered in order to overcome the internal Ukrainian crisis."
"A wide-ranging constitutional reform -- and let me stress, with the participation of all regions -- must be launched [in Ukraine]. We cannot impose that on Ukrainian figures. Nevertheless, this is our assessment of the situation that has unfolded there. It will be very difficult to overcome a deep internal crisis in Ukraine without it. This is, by the way, what I told acting Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchitsya who asked me for a meeting. We told him what steps, in our opinion, the leaders appointed by the [Ukrainian] Rada (parliament) ought to take in order to finally establish a proper pan-Ukrainian dialogue."
Lavrov said President Vladimir Putin had instructed him to meet with Deshchytsya.
Ukrainian authorities have been requesting a meeting with Lavrov since the government of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych fell last month and pro-Russian forces occupied areas in Crimea.
The meeting between Lavrov and Deshchytsya was the highest-level meeting between Russian and Ukrainian officials since former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych was chased from power in late February.
Since then pro-Russian forces exerted control over Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and on March 17 a hastily prepared referendum was held to secede from Ukraine and join Russia, sparking the current crisis between Russia and the West, which some have called the greatest threat to security since the Cold War.
Lavrov also met with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Monday and they discussed the situation in Ukraine.
Kerry expressed "strong concern" about the build-up of Russian troops along Ukraine's border.
Kerry called on Russia to defuse the situation and said additional sanctions could be placed on Russia if Moscow continues on its present course.
Lavrov downplayed the significance of Russia's possible expulsion from the G8 group of industrialized nations.
"As to the G8, well, you see, G8 is an informal club. No one hands out membership IDs for it. No one can kick anyone out of it. It may be the case that G8 has already fulfilled its mission -- and this is exactly what many people think because since the creation of G20 it is precisely where all economic and financial issues are being discussed."
20:53
24.3.2014
Reuters has quoted Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko as saying after a discussion of the Executive Committee of international soccer body FIFA that Crimea's leading football clubs -- Tavriya Simferopol and FC Sevastopol -- are likely to join the Russian league by the end of this calendar year. "I have been informed that it is a reality -- there are two new clubs in Russia."
The Ukrainian league's season ends in May.
The Ukrainian league's season ends in May.
20:36
24.3.2014
G7 statement drops cooperation with Russia and warns that "Russia's actions will have significant consequences" adding that Moscow "has a clear choice to make." Here are excerpts from the statement:
"We remind Russia of its international obligations, and its responsibilities including those for the world economy. Russia has a clear choice to make. Diplomatic avenues to de-escalate the situation remain open, and we encourage the Russian Government to take them. Russia must respect Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty, begin discussions with the Government of Ukraine, and avail itself of offers of international mediation and monitoring to address any legitimate concerns....
"We will suspend our participation in the G-8 until Russia changes course and the environment comes back to where the G-8 is able to have a meaningful discussion and will meet again in G-7 format at the same time as planned, in June 2014, in Brussels, to discuss the broad agenda we have together. We have also advised our Foreign Ministers not to attend the April meeting in Moscow. In addition, we have decided that G-7 Energy Ministers will meet to discuss ways to strengthen our collective energy security....
"At the same time, we stand firm in our support for the people of Ukraine who seek to restore unity, democracy, political stability, and economic prosperity to their country. We commend the Ukrainian government's ambitious reform agenda and will support its implementation as Ukraine seeks to start a new chapter in its history, grounded on a broad-based constitutional reform, free and fair presidential elections in May, promotion of human rights and respect of national minorities."
"We will suspend our participation in the G-8 until Russia changes course and the environment comes back to where the G-8 is able to have a meaningful discussion and will meet again in G-7 format at the same time as planned, in June 2014, in Brussels, to discuss the broad agenda we have together. We have also advised our Foreign Ministers not to attend the April meeting in Moscow. In addition, we have decided that G-7 Energy Ministers will meet to discuss ways to strengthen our collective energy security....
"At the same time, we stand firm in our support for the people of Ukraine who seek to restore unity, democracy, political stability, and economic prosperity to their country. We commend the Ukrainian government's ambitious reform agenda and will support its implementation as Ukraine seeks to start a new chapter in its history, grounded on a broad-based constitutional reform, free and fair presidential elections in May, promotion of human rights and respect of national minorities."