Here is today's map of the security situation in eastern Ukraine, according to the National Security and Defense Council (click to enlarge):
Five Former Presidents See Threat In Rising Polish-Ukrainian Tensions
Five ex-presidents from Poland and Ukraine have issued a joint appeal for reconciliation between their countries amid growing nationalism and provocations from Russia that have strained their relations.
The ex-presidents expressed concerned about the strains, saying that unity is now needed given "the challenge of Russian aggression to Ukraine."
The appeal was presented at a May 28 news conference in Warsaw by the two former Polish presidents, Aleksander Kwasniewski and Bronislaw Komorowski.
It also was signed by former Ukrainian presidents Leonid Kravchuk, Leonid Kuchma, and Viktor Yushchenko.
Poland for years was one of the strongest advocates in the European Union and NATO for bringing Ukraine into the Western fold. That position infuriated Moscow.
But Polish-Ukrainian ties have been strained recently over disagreements rooted in historical grievances.
Based on reporting by AP and Reuters
Polish PM Calls Nord Stream 2 'Weapon' Of Hybrid Warfare
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki says Russia's planned natural-gas pipeline, Nord Stream 2, is a weapon of hybrid warfare that Moscow wants to use to undermine European energy security and the solidarity of the European Union and NATO.
Morawiecki said at a NATO Parliamentary Assembly meeting in Warsaw on May 28 that Nord Stream 2 is "a poison pill for European security, which can have far-reaching consequences."
Nord Stream 2 is a controversial project that would expand the current Nord Stream pipeline, which passes along the bottom of the Baltic Sea to deliver Russian gas to Germany.
The United States, Poland, the Baltic states, and several other EU countries have expressed concern about Nord Stream 2 -- which avoids existing gas pipelines through Ukraine -- and the added leverage on energy security it could give Moscow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Washington's opposition to Nord Stream 2 stems from President Donald Trump's desire to encourage exports of U.S. liquefied natural gas.
Earlier at the assembly, Polish President Andrzej Duda also issued a warning about Russian intentions in Europe.
"With regret, it must be said that Moscow has never come to terms with the collapse of the imperial Soviet Union. The invasion of Georgia and the unlawful annexation of Crimea and military intervention in Ukraine illustrate the real intentions of Russia," Duda said, in reference to the Russia-Georgia war of 2008, Russia's illegal 2014 annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region, and Moscow's support for pro-Russia separatist fighters in eastern Ukraine.
Based on reporting by AP, CTK, and EuroZpravy.cz
Poland Seeks Permanent U.S. Troop Presence To Counter Russia
Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said on May 28 that he has had talks with U.S. officials about permanently stationing U.S. troops in Poland as a deterrent against Russian aggression.
Blaszczak said he had the talks recently in Washington that were prompted by security concerns following Russia’s illegal annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula and its support for pro-Russia separatist fighters in eastern Ukraine.
"The result of our efforts is that the U.S. Senate has contacted the Pentagon about an assessment of...[the] permanent presence of U.S. troops in Poland," Blaszczak said on state Radio 1. "Such presence is of great importance because it deters the adversary."
A report by the Onet.pl news portal says Warsaw is offering up to $2 billion to help build the infrastructure for a permanent U.S. base in Poland.
Poland currently hosts a contingent of U.S. troops on a rotational, temporary, but open-ended mission.
In Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said that an increase in NATO’s military presence near Russia's borders "certainly does not contribute to security and stability on the continent in any way."
"These expansionist steps, certainly, result in counteractions of the Russian side to balance the parity which is violated every time this way," Peskov told Russia’s state-run TASS news agency on May 28.
Based on reporting by AP, BBC, Onet.pl, and TASS
That concludes our live-blogging of the Ukraine crisis for Monday, May 28, 2018. Check back here tomorrow for more of our continuing coverage. Thanks for reading and take care.