EU Postpones Renewal Of Russian Economic Sanctions
European Union nations postponed a decision on December 9 on renewing the bloc's economic sanctions against Russia after Italy called for a debate on the matter.
Ambassadors from the 28 member states had been expected to agree on a six-month extension of the sanctions, which expire at the end of January, at a meeting in Brussels without any debate.
But Rome said the matter should be decided by EU leaders who meet next week in Brussels.
Italy and some other southern European states have shown some reluctance to maintain the sanctions, which have packed a powerful economic punch.
The sanctions, which were imposed over Moscow's annexation of Crimea and support for pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine, target Russia's banking, oll, and defense industries. They were originally introduced in mid-2014.
Poland, the Baltic states, and some other Eastern European nations have taken a harder line on maintaining the sanctions.
Based on reporting by AFP, Reuters, and ANSA
This ends our live blogging for December 9. Be sure to check back tomorrow for our continuing coverage.
Human rights violation are an ongoing issue in annexed Ukrainian Crimea, according to the 12th UN monitoring mission of human rights in Ukraine report.
"In the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the status of which is prescribed by UN General Assembly resolution 68/262, residents continue to be affected by the broad curtailment of their rights due to the application of a restrictive legal framework imposed upon them by the Russian Federation," the report states.
The document also says that the blockade of Crimea initiated by activists in mainland Ukraine has also violated human rights.
The report also states that the confirmed death toll from the conflict in eastern Ukraine now exceeds 9,000, despite a "significant reduction of hostilities in certain parts" of the region.
Putin orders government to sue Ukraine if defaults on debt:
Russian President Vladimir Putin has instructed the Finance Ministry to take Ukraine to court if the country defaults on its $3 billion debt to Moscow.
"Go ahead, take it to court," Putin told Finance Minister Anton Siluanov at a government meeting on December 9.
The comments come a day after the International Monetary Fund revised its policy, allowing the Washington-based institution to continue lending to countries that fail to pay debts held by other countries.
That means financial aid to Ukraine may continue if the country doesn't repay the $3 billion Eurobond Russia bought in December 2013.
Last month, Moscow offered to restructure the bond, which matures on December 20, by spreading out payments over three years.
But Ukraine wants the bond to be restructured under an agreement reached with its commercial creditors that would write down the principal of the debt. (AFP, TASS, Bloomberg)
Ukrainian miners will protest across Ukraine on International Human Rights Day on December 10, Mykhaylo Volynets, chairman of the Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Ukraine and the Independent Trade Union of Miners of Ukraine, announced.
Miners are demanding that the fuel and energy system in Ukraine be stabilized, overdue salaries be paid, and Minister of Energy and Coal Volodymyr Demchyshyn be dismissed, he said.