More on the spat sparked by the German ambassador's comments:
Good morning. We'll start the live blog today with this item that was filed by our news desk while we were gone:
Germany Slams Ukrainian Lawmaker For Defacing Berlin Wall Remnant
A Ukrainian lawmaker has defaced a remnant of the Berlin Wall on the grounds of the German embassy in Kyiv in protest over Germany's position in peace negotiations, drawing a rebuke from Berlin.
Oleksiy Honcharenko, a member of President Petro Poroshenko's bloc, sprayed the word "Nein" or "No" in red paint on a fragment of the wall on February 8 after German Ambassador Ernst Reichel suggested that local elections could be held in eastern Ukraine despite the presence of Russian troops in the region.
The Kyiv legislator, who enjoys immunity from prosecution, then posted images of his vandalism on Facebook and wrote that the Berlin wall is a "clear symbol of recent Russian occupation of Europe."
Poroshenko's government has insisted on the withdrawal of all Russian troops as well as the end of all fighting in eastern Ukraine before it will agree to hold elections there -- a key sticking point in negotiations with Russia to end the conflict.
European leaders have previously avoided publicly disagreeing with Kyiv, but Reichel told RBK-Ukrajina in a recent interview that it might not be necessary for all Russian soldiers to leave eastern Ukraine before elections could proceed there. Guaranteeing the safety of Ukrainian politicians running in the elections would be sufficient, he said.
Reichel's remarks, which openly stated a position that Germany has taken privately in the negotiations, caused such a stir in Kyiv that some Ukrainian lawmakers called on Berlin to replace him.
But Germany has stood behind Reichel, prompting analysts to say Berlin is stepping up pressure on Kyiv to make progress in the peace talks.
'Wholly Inappropriate Behavior'
On the incident of vandalism, German Foreign Ministry spokesman Martin Schaefer said employees at the Kyiv embassy tried to stop Honcharenko from spray-painting the wall relic, but were thwarted when he claimed legislative immunity.
Schaefer called the lawmaker's actions "wholly inappropriate behavior."
Schaefer said Germany considers Ukraine a "close partner" and was the first country to establish diplomatic relations with Kyiv 25 years ago.
Moreover, Schaefer said Germany, which along with France is sponsoring the negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, is working to host another negotiating session next week.
Under terms of the Minsk cease-fire agreement Poroshenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed in 2015, Russia is supposed to withdraw all troops and weapons from eastern Ukraine while Ukraine is obligated to hold elections in the eastern areas now held by Russia-backed separatists, and provide those areas with more autonomy within Ukraine.
With reporting by AP, Radio Svoboda, and dpa
This ends our live blogging for February 8. Be sure to check back tomorrow for our continuing coverage.
U.S. senators submit bill seeking veto power on Russia sanctions:
By Carl Schreck
WASHINGTON -- A group of U.S. senators has introduced legislation that would hamstring any effort by President Donald Trump's administration to lift sanctions imposed on Russia for its actions in Ukraine.
The bill, called the Russia Sanctions Review Act, has both Republican and Democratic backers and comes amid mounting concerns in Congress about the Trump administration's policy intentions toward Russia.
Trump has repeatedly signaled he wants more cooperation with Russia in areas like the fight against international terrorism, particularly in Syria. But his administration has made statements about Ukraine and other issues that echo Russia's perspective, in contrast to the previous U.S. administration.
Senators Lindsey Graham (Republican-South Carolina) and Ben Cardin (Democrat-Maryland) are among the group backing the legislation that would impose strict congressional oversight and veto power over the Trump administration if it sought to lift sanctions on Russia.
"The reason for the Russia Review Act is that we've heard the president speak several times about potentially reducing or eliminating sanctions," Cardin told reporters on February 8.
"So it's aimed at getting consultation from Congress and, if necessary, action from Congress, if the president were to change our policy on the current sanctions without the broad support and understanding of Congress."
The bill is co-sponsored by Senators John McCain (Republican-Arizona), Marco Rubio (Republican-Florida), Claire McCaskill (Democrat-Missouri), and Sherrod Brown (Democrat-Ohio).
Trump's predecessor, Barack Obama, froze assets and banned visas on a range of top Russia officials after Moscow annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014.
Ukraine, the United States, and the EU also say that Russia has supported separatist forces in eastern Ukraine who are fighting Ukrainian troops. Russia denies those charges.
More than 9,750 people have been killed in the fighting in Ukraine's Donbas region.
McCain said in a statement after the legislation was introduced that easing sanctions against Russia "would send the wrong message as [Russian President] Vladimir Putin continues to oppress his citizens, murder his political opponents, invade his neighbors, threaten America's allies, and attempt to undermine our elections."
"Congress must have oversight of any decision that would impact our ability to hold Russia accountable for its flagrant violation of international law and attack our institutions," added McCain, who has repeatedly been accused by officials in Moscow of baselessly stirring up anti-Russian sentiment in Washington.
Speaking to reporters earlier in the day, Cardin said the legislation was modeled after the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act, a 2015 law giving Congress a say in the landmark deal between Tehran and world powers to restrict Iran's nuclear activities in exchange for easing sanctions.
He expressed optimism that the legislation will receive broad bipartisan backing in Congress and said he believed it could be passed with sufficient support to prevent Trump from vetoing it. (w/Mike Eckel)
Officials: Sheremet's death a contract killing:
Ukrainian officials say Belarusian journalist Pavel Sheremet was killed because of his professional activities in a contract killing.
Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said in Kyiv on February 8 the results of a pretrial investigation into Sheremet's death "lead to the conclusion that this crime was carefully prepared by a group of people."
"Investigators do not rule out that the order for the killing came from the Russian Federation," Avakov added.
Oleksandr Vakulenko, the deputy chief of Ukraine's National Police and head of its main investigative unit, said Sheremet's journalistic activities in Ukraine, where he lived, and Belarus and Russia "is considered in the first place" as a motive for his killing.
Sheremet, 44, was killed when the car he was driving to work was blown up in central Kyiv on July 20.
Jailed in Belarus in 1997 while recording a story on the Russian-Belarusian border, Sheremet was often critical of top political leaders and other government officials in his reporting.
He had also warned in the last blog post before his death that Ukrainian politicians who were former members of volunteer battalions that had fought separatists in eastern Ukraine could carry out a coup in Kyiv.
Vakulenko said an antipersonnel mine was used in the blast that killed Sheremet. He added that no one had yet been arrested for the killing.
Ukrainian Prosecutor-General Yuriy Lutsenko agreed with Avakov in saying that Sheremet's "killer was not alone. This is a group [of assassins] and we can see part of this group in the video [taken where Sheremet's car was parked before he drove it]." (Interfax, Kyiv Post)