Good morning. We'll start our live blog today with this item that RFE/RL's Washington bureau posted overnight:
More Than Two Dozen U.S. Senators Urge Trump To Stay Firm On Russia Sanctions
WASHINGTON -- More than two dozen U.S. senators have urged U.S. President-elect Donald Trump not to weaken sanctions targeting Russia for its actions in Crimea and elsewhere in Ukraine.
In a December 8 letter signed by 27 Democrats and Republicans, the senators also called on Trump to authorize the supply of lethal weaponry to Ukraine, something that outgoing President Barack Obama's administration has refused to do.
"In light of Russia's continued aggression and repeated refusal to respect Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereign right to choose its own destiny, we also renew our call for the United States to increase political, economic, and military support for Ukraine," they wrote.
The letter was issued hours after Congress finalized a massive defense bill that includes millions of dollars in military assistance and support for Ukraine.
Trump, who takes office on January 20, has signaled he wants a more conciliatory approach toward Russia and cast doubt on the necessity of NATO.
Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea peninsula in March 2014 after mass demonstrations forced Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych to flee.
Moscow later backed separatists in eastern Ukraine with support that Kyiv and the West say includes heavy weaponry and military personnel.
At least 9,700 people have been killed the conflict between Kyiv's forces and the separatists since April 2014, according to the UN.
We are now closing the live blog for today, but we'll be back again tomorrow morning to follow all the latest developments. Until then, you can catch up with all our other Ukraine coverage here.
Here's another item from our Washington bureau that also touches on the wider ramifications of the Ukraine crisis:
White House: U.S. To Examine $11 Billion Rosneft Deal For Sanctions 'Impact'
WASHINGTON -- The White House says U.S. authorities will examine the around $11 billion privatization of a stake in Russian state oil giant Rosneft to determine how U.S. sanctions may impact the deal.
The deal announced this week would give a 19.5 percent stake in Rosneft to a consortium of Swiss commodities giant Glencore and the Qatari sovereign wealth fund.
Washington hit Rosneft with sanctions in response to Russia's annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula in 2014 and its backing of armed separatists in eastern Ukraine.
The sanctions place restrictions on long-term lending and the transfer of some U.S. drilling and exploration technology to Rosneft but do not bar trading in its equity.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters in Washington on December 8 that experts from the U.S. Treasury Department who are "responsible for constructing and enforcing the sanctions regime [against Russia] will carefully look at a transaction like this."
"They'll look at the terms of the deal and evaluate what impact sanctions would have on it," Earnest said.