10:51
17.5.2014
From our news desk:
Ukrainian officials say pro-Russian separatists were able to free a separatist leader who had been captured by Ukrainian security forces on the Russian border.
Valeriy Bolotov, the self-styled governor of the self-declared Luhansk People's Republic, was detained by Ukrainian border guards on May 17 as he was returning to the Luhansk region from Russia.
At least 100 armed gunmen then attacked the border checkpoint and exchanged fire with Ukrainian border guards, eventually securing Bolotov's release.
Bolotov reportedly was shot on May 13 by an unidentified gunman and was in Russia receiving treatment for his wound.
A Ukrainian border guard official said they are determining if there are casualties from the shoot-out.
The incident occurred ahead of peace talks between in Kharkiv aimed at resolving the crisis with pro-Russian separatists who have seized government buildings in a string of eastern cities.
Valeriy Bolotov, the self-styled governor of the self-declared Luhansk People's Republic, was detained by Ukrainian border guards on May 17 as he was returning to the Luhansk region from Russia.
At least 100 armed gunmen then attacked the border checkpoint and exchanged fire with Ukrainian border guards, eventually securing Bolotov's release.
Bolotov reportedly was shot on May 13 by an unidentified gunman and was in Russia receiving treatment for his wound.
A Ukrainian border guard official said they are determining if there are casualties from the shoot-out.
The incident occurred ahead of peace talks between in Kharkiv aimed at resolving the crisis with pro-Russian separatists who have seized government buildings in a string of eastern cities.
10:30
17.5.2014
Regarding further sanctions, U.S. President Barack Obama and French President Francois Hollande spoke by telephone last night and discussed the crisis in Ukraine. Thery both warned Russia it will face "significant" further costs if it continues provocative and destabilizing behavior.
10:28
17.5.2014
Good morning, picking up the live blog for another day.
From the German press this morning, Ukraine's acting Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchytsya has called on the West to impose tougher sanctions against Russia, which he accused of waging a "hidden war" in eastern Ukraine.
Deshchytsya was speaking in an interview with the German newspaper "Die Welt."
The United States and the European Union have already imposed several rounds of sanctions on Russian individuals and some companies, accusing Russian President Vladimir Putin of stoking the eastern rebellions, a charge Putin has denied.
Deshchytsya said German politicians should be aware "that Russia will not stop at Luhansk and Donetsk" and added that if they do not want to be held responsible for destabilizing the region, the German government has to be tougher toward Russia.
From the German press this morning, Ukraine's acting Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchytsya has called on the West to impose tougher sanctions against Russia, which he accused of waging a "hidden war" in eastern Ukraine.
Deshchytsya was speaking in an interview with the German newspaper "Die Welt."
The United States and the European Union have already imposed several rounds of sanctions on Russian individuals and some companies, accusing Russian President Vladimir Putin of stoking the eastern rebellions, a charge Putin has denied.
Deshchytsya said German politicians should be aware "that Russia will not stop at Luhansk and Donetsk" and added that if they do not want to be held responsible for destabilizing the region, the German government has to be tougher toward Russia.
21:28
16.5.2014
BREAKING: U.S. President Barack Obama has repeated U.S. warnings that Russia will face "additional costs" if it continues its provocative behavior in Ukraine. The White House says Obama made the remark in a telephone conversation with the French President Francois Hollande.
21:21
16.5.2014
19:38
16.5.2014
18:50
16.5.2014
RT correspondent Graham Phillips says he was shot at by Ukrainian troops near Kramatorsk.
RT, however, says he walked into a tripwire flare.
But Phillips is sticking to what he said.
RT, however, says he walked into a tripwire flare.
But Phillips is sticking to what he said.
18:46
16.5.2014
Some more soundbites of Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt speaking today at a news conference in Kyiv.
"I think it is elected representatives of the people in Donetsk or Luhansk, or wherever it is, Kharkiv. Those are the ones that should be [participating in roundtable talks]. And then it is for them really to go out and anchor their policies with the people. Because otherwise, there is a risk if you take steps and say that you'll invite all these green guys with guns to the table, then you sort of delegitimize the democratic institutions of the country."
"We should not create the impression that you can get influence by a gun and that those that are democratically elected are irrelevant. And I said the east is dominated by the Party of Regions. The Party of Regions has gone through and is going through a very difficult time. But we should not forget that during the elections for ex number of years it has been the single largest political party of the country. And they have elected representatives."
"The most important thing to help Ukraine is not what we can do to sort of sanction Russia. Because even if sanctions work, they work fairly long-term. The most important thing is to bring stability to Ukraine. It is the democratic stability of Ukraine, it is the credibility of the economic reforms of Ukraine, it is democratic maturity of Ukraine that at the end of the day is going to decide the outcome of it."
"I think it is elected representatives of the people in Donetsk or Luhansk, or wherever it is, Kharkiv. Those are the ones that should be [participating in roundtable talks]. And then it is for them really to go out and anchor their policies with the people. Because otherwise, there is a risk if you take steps and say that you'll invite all these green guys with guns to the table, then you sort of delegitimize the democratic institutions of the country."
"We should not create the impression that you can get influence by a gun and that those that are democratically elected are irrelevant. And I said the east is dominated by the Party of Regions. The Party of Regions has gone through and is going through a very difficult time. But we should not forget that during the elections for ex number of years it has been the single largest political party of the country. And they have elected representatives."
"The most important thing to help Ukraine is not what we can do to sort of sanction Russia. Because even if sanctions work, they work fairly long-term. The most important thing is to bring stability to Ukraine. It is the democratic stability of Ukraine, it is the credibility of the economic reforms of Ukraine, it is democratic maturity of Ukraine that at the end of the day is going to decide the outcome of it."
17:05
16.5.2014
A Finnish opera singer (pictured above) says she won't perform with Russian conductor Valery Gergiev or any of the other hundreds of Russian cultural figures who expressed support for Russia's annexation of Ukrainian territory, titled "Boycott: Diva Won't Sing With Conductors Who Support Putin."
The Finnish soprano Karita Mattila has told her local paper, the Helsingin Sanomat, that she will not perform with Valery Gergiev or anyone else on the list of 500 Russian artists who endorsed Vladimir Putin’s annexation of Crimea. She has already pulled out of one Carnegie date with him.
The Finns know all about Russian expansionism. They lost East Karelia, ten percent of their territory, in 1945.
The Finns know all about Russian expansionism. They lost East Karelia, ten percent of their territory, in 1945.
16:41
16.5.2014
ITAR-TASS cites a notification on the Ukrainian parliament's website, saying it "has registered a draft resolution on disbanding 'the faction of deputies of the Communist Party of Ukraine.'"