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Ukraine's acting Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchytsya speaks to the UN General Assembly on March 27.
Ukraine's acting Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchytsya speaks to the UN General Assembly on March 27.

Live Blog: UN Backs Ukraine Integrity

Final Summary For March 27

-- 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 Muzychko earlier 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
19:21 17.3.2014
Jan Techau, director of the Carnegie Europe think tank in Brussels, says the limited first round of targeted EU sanctions and a draft list of 120-130 names leaked earlier are warnings to Russia that the list can be quickly augmented.

READ ON: EU, U.S. Fire Opening Salvo In Sanctions Conflict With Russia
19:22 17.3.2014
19:26 17.3.2014
From the wires:
The Kremlin says Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree recognizing Ukraine's Crimea region as a sovereign state.
07:24 18.3.2014
Here's the latest update from the wires:

The Kremlin says President Vladimir Putin has approved a draft treaty to make Crimea part of Russia.

The move comes shortly after Putin formally informed both houses of parliament of Crimea's request to join Russia -- the first legislative step required by the Russian Constitution if the peninsula is to be annexed from Ukraine.


Yesterday, Putin recognized Crimea as an independent state in defiance of the international community's insistence that it remains part of Ukraine. (AFP, Interfax, and Reuters)
07:34 18.3.2014
According to the Reuters news agency, Tokyo is now also taking measures against Russia:

Japan says it is slapping sanctions on Russia in response to Moscow's intervention in Ukraine.

Japanese Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said in Tokyo today that the government is freezing all talks with Russia on relaxing visa requirements, and on all new negotiations on investment accords and new agreements on space and military activities.

Suga, who is the top government spokesman, also said, "We ask that Russia respect international law and respect the integrity of Ukraine and not move towards annexing Crimea." (Reuters)
07:53 18.3.2014
Here's a little more from our newsdesk on U.S. diplomatic efforts to dissuade Russia from intervening further in Ukraine:

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is due to arrive in Warsaw today as he begins a two-day visit to Poland and Lithuania over the Ukrainian crisis.

Biden, who left Washington yesterday, is due to meet in Warsaw with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski.

He will meet separately in Warsaw with Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves.

In Vilnius, Biden will meet with Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite and Latvian President Andris Berzins before leaving the region tomorrow.

The meetings with these NATO allies are part of a broader U.S. campaign to persuade Russian President Vladimir Putin to call off Moscow's intervention in Ukraine.

Latvia and Estonia share borders with Russia, while Poland and Lithuania are nearby. (AP, WarsawVoice.com)
08:18 18.3.2014
According to "The Moscow Times" former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev has backed Russia's takeover of Crimea, saying it corrected a historical "mistake."
09:17 18.3.2014
09:59 18.3.2014
This is interesting...

10:21 18.3.2014

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