Russian journalist killed in east Ukraine: employer

MOSCOW: A journalist with Russian public television has been shot dead in east Ukraine where pro-Moscow separatists are battling Ukrainian forces, the media worker´s employer Channel One said Monday.

Anatoly Klyan, a 68-year-old cameraman, was among a group of Russian journalists on a reporting trip with the insurgents, the TV channel said.

"Once on site, shots rang out from the soldiers´ side. Anatoly Klyan was mortally wounded in the stomach," said the channel.

The driver of the bus transporting the journalists was wounded and in hospital on Monday morning, said a reporter from Russian news channel Rossiya 24.Klyan had worked 40 years for the Russian channel and had carried out several missions in difficult conditions, his employer said.

On June 17, two members of a Russian television crew were killed in the ex-Soviet state´s separatist east. They were the first Russian media workers confirmed to have died in eastern Ukraine since fighting erupted there in mid-April.

Italian photographer Andrea Rocchelli and his Russian assistant Andrei Mironov were killed also killed in the restive region in late May.

US imposes sanctions on 7 Russian officials

AP Barack Obama

The United States levied new sanctions on Monday on seven Russian government officials, as well as 17 companies with links to Vladimir Putin’s close associates, as the Obama administration seeks to pressure the Russian leader to deescalate the crisis in Ukraine.

The new penalties were a response to what U.S. officials said is Russia’s failure to live up to commitments it agreed to under an international accord aimed at ending the dispute.

Among the targets of the new sanctions is Igor Sechin, the president of state oil company Rosneft, who has worked for Putin since the early 1990s.

Even with the new measures, Mr. Obama voiced pessimism about whether they would be enough to change Mr. Putin’s calculus.

“We don’t yet know whether it’s going to work,” he said.

Also on the list of those sanctioned by the U.S. are Aleksei Pushkov, the Kremlin-connected head of Russian Parliament’s Lower House, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak, and Sergei Chemezov, another long-time Putin ally.

The company-specific sanctions will affect entities like Transoil, a freight rail operator, and other infrastructure companies involved in electrical and gas pipeline construction. The U.S. also sanctioned two entities it alleges are owned or controlled by Bank Rossiya, which is owned by members of Mr. Putin’s inner circle.

Armoured vehicles with Russian flags appear in east Ukraine

Slavyansk: Armoured vehicles bearing Russian flags rolled through a flashpoint town in eastern Ukraine today, a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the country was on the brink of civil war.

Tensions continued to mount ahead of high-level diplomatic talks on the Ukraine crisis in Geneva tomorrow after Kiev sent in troops to oust pro-Moscow separatists from the east.

An AFP reporter in the town of Slavyansk saw at least six APCs, some flying Russian flags, carrying dozens of armed men through the town.

Russian media said Ukrainian troops in the vehicles had switched sides to join the separatists but the Ukrainian army told AFP that it had no reports that any of its equipment had been seized.

Elsewhere, pro-Russian gunmen stormed the mayor's office in the regional capital of Donetsk, according to an AFP reporter at the scene.

As the situation on the ground appeared to escalate, the authorities in Kiev ratcheted up the verbal attack on Russia, with Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk accusing Moscow of trying to build "a new Berlin wall".

Russian commanders in the separatist east had issued pro-Kremlin militants with "shoot-to-kill" orders, the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) said in a statement.

Yatsenyuk demanded Moscow halt its alleged support for the separatists.

"There is only one directive for the Ukrainian foreign ministry -- the Russian government has to immediately withdraw its commando groups, condemn the terrorists and demand they leave the installations," he said.

Nevertheless, he said Kiev remained committed to Thursday's crunch talks scheduled in Geneva between the top diplomats of Russia, the European Union, the United States and Ukraine.

"There is only one directive for the Ukrainian foreign ministry -- the Russian government has to immediately withdraw its commando groups, condemn the terrorists and demand they leave the installations," he said.

Nevertheless, he said Kiev remained committed to Thursday's crunch talks scheduled in Geneva between the top diplomats of Russia, the European Union, the United States and Ukraine.

Russian media rejects US claims on civilian deaths in drone attacks

MOSCOW: Number of civilian’s deaths from US drone attacks in Pakistan is far bigger than Washington admits, Russian media said on Sunday.

In a documentary on US drones, the Russian media said over 3000 people half of them civilians have been killed in 350 aerial strikes in Pakistan.

The Russian media called US term ‘Signature Strikes’ as worrying since in this procedure suspects are killed in US drone attacks without any substantial evidence.

They said the US drone attacks are tantamount to war crimes and sheer violation of international laws.

NATO fears Russian push to Moldova

AP Soldiers in unmarked uniforms walk near Ukrainian marine base in the city of Feodosia, Crimea on Sunday.

NATO has expressed fears of a Russian military push beyond Crimea into eastern Ukraine and further south to Moldova’s breakaway Transdniestria.

U.S. Air Force General Philip Breedlove, NATO's Supreme Allied Commander in Europe said the Russian force massed at the Ukrainian border «is very, very sizable and very, very ready.»

The top NATO commander told an event held by the German Marshall Fund think tank that he was very concerned about the threat to Transdniestria.

There is absolutely sufficient [Russian] force postured on the eastern border of Ukraine to run to Transdniestria if the decision was made to do that and that is very worrisome.»

Russia is acting much more like an adversary than a partner,» the U.S. general said.

Transdniestria, a Russian-speaking industrialised region of Moldova, broke away from the former Soviet state in 1990. In 2006 Transdniestria overwhelmingly voted in a referendum to join Russia, but Moscow ignored the vote as it tried to work out a confederation arrangement for Moldova. After Crimea’s referendum on splitting from Ukraine and reuniting with Russia, the Speaker of Transdniestria’s Parliament appealed to his Russian counterpart in the State Duma lower house to provide legislative possibilities for the region’s accession to Russia.

However, Speaker of the Russian Parliament’s upper house said the absorption of Transdniestria or Georgia’s breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia were not on the agenda «at this stage.»

The three self-proclaimed republics «have not asked for joining Russia; it is inadvisable at this stage to talk about this,» Speaker Valentina Matviyenko said in an interview. «One should not portray Russia as a country bent on seizing territories. This question is not on the agenda.»

Russia’s top defence official has also sought to dispel Western fears of a Russian military move into Ukraine.

Russia is complying with all international agreements on troop limits near its border with Ukraine,» said Deputy Defence Minister Anatoly Antonov.

Mr Antonov told reporters on on Saturday that eight eight groups of foreign monitors from nine Western nations carried out inspections of Russian troop deployments near Ukrainian borders.

The inspectors «have not established any undeclared military activity that could pose a threat to [Russia’s] neighbouring countries,» he said.

In Crimea, the Russian flag is now flying over 189 Ukrainian military installations, the Russian defence ministry said on Sunday, a day after pro-Russian forces stormed and seized the Belbek air force base, Ukraine’s last major military facility in the peninsula. The Ukrainian commander of the airbase was detained after the takeover, but released on Sunday.

In the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk pro-Russian demonstrators again rallied on Sunday in support of their demand for a referendum on greater autonomy from Kiev.

Russia’s closest ally Belarus President Alexander Lukashenka voiced concerns that Crimea had set a «bad precedent,» even as he admitted that the region was now «de facto» a part of Russia.

The statement reflected the unease Belarus and other post-Soviet states feel over Russia’s annexation of Crimea.

At the same time the Belarus leader blamed Ukraine’s new government for provoking Russia.

Why did they ban the Russian language after coming to power and put pressure on Russian-speakers?» he told journalists on Sunday. «They gave a pretext and reason for Russia to intervene.»

Clinton warns of further Russian aggression

A child plays near a Russian soldier, right, while Ukrainian soldiers look on from behind gates as the Russian soldier guards the gate of an Ukrainian infantry base in Perevalne, Ukraine.

Other countries near Russia could also face aggression if President Vladimir Putin is allowed to get away with his actions in Ukraine, former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Tuesday.
Clinton, a potential 2016 presidential contender, called Russia’s move to annex Crimea illegal and a violation of international law.
“If he’s allowed to get away with that, I think you’ll see a lot of other countries either directly facing Russian aggression or suborned with their political systems so that they are so intimidated that in effect they are transformed into vassals, not sovereign democracies,” Clinton said at an event hosted by the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal at the Palais des Congres.
In response to a question about Ukraine, Clinton advocated a “two-track” approach toward resolving the crisis that included economic incentives and “standing up for our values.”
Along with sanctions against Russia, Clinton argued for increased financial and technical support for a democratic government in Kiev.
She also said Europe needs to be encouraged to find other energy sources so they aren’t dependent on Russian oil and gas.
“We don’t have to be rattling sabers and all that. That’s not useful,” she said.
“But people need to get moving in protecting themselves against future intimidation. It might take a year, it might take two years, but it needs to be slow and steady. And then once again people will see the difference, they will see the choices.”
Clinton referred to the conflict as a “clash of values” and “an effort by Putin to rewrite the boundaries of post-World War II Europe.”
“We’re going to stand up against illegal acts and we’re going to demonstrate that we have a better model, just like we did for 50 years. That takes continuity and persistence and it takes a consensus across the political spectrum in our country, certainly,” she said.
Clinton said she’s hopeful another Cold War can be avoided.
“Obviously nobody wants to see that. I think that’s primarily up to Putin.”
Earlier this month, Clinton likened Putin’s actions on the Crimean Peninsula to those of Adolf Hitler in the 1930s. She has also said he is a tough but thin-skinned leader who is squandering his country’s potential.

Ukraine’s ambassador in Moscow meets Russian deputy minister

MOSCOW: Ukraine's ambassador to Russia and a deputy Russian foreign minister held a "frank" meeting on Saturday, Moscow said, without giving details of any discussion of Russian-occupied Crimea.
Envoy Vladimir Yelchenko met deputy minister Grigory Karasin, the Russian foreign ministry said, and "issues of Russo-Ukrainian relations were discussed in a frank atmosphere".
Russia has denounced the overthrow of Ukrainian President President Viktor Yanukovich in mass protests last month as a coup, and declared the country's interim leadership illegitimate.
Russia has seized control of Crimea, a Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula with a Russian-speaking majority, where overnight confrontations between Russian troops and besieged Ukrainian soldiers raised tensions further on Saturday.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk said on Friday Ukraine was ready for talks with Russia, but Moscow must first withdraw its troops, abide by international agreements and halt its support for "separatists and terrorists".
He said he had requested a second telephone call with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. The two premiers spoke on March 1, the only high-level contact between the counntries since the crisis began.

Crimea Voted to become a part of the Russian Federation

Authorities in Crimea voted to accelerate secession from Ukraine and unanimously backed a law that declared the territory to be part of the Russian Federation on 6 March 2014.
The cabinet had decided to take the decision by referendum in 10 days. MPs of Crimea had voted by 78 votes to nil for the territory to leave Ukraine.
A referendum on more autonomy for the region due on 30 March 2014 was brought forward to 16 March 2014. Now the residents had the option to unify the Black Sea peninsula with Russia.

After the law was initiated, the Crimean government asserted that all Ukrainian troops on the territory of Crimea should either leave or be treated as occupiers. Crimea is planning to introduce the rouble and readopt Russian state symbols.
Russia has welcomed the decision of the Crimean Government and Russian Parliament DUMA had begun work on a bill that would make it easier for Russia to join new territories.
While on the other hand, the Ukrainian government had started the procedures to dismiss Crimea's assembly and to block the referendum. They are claiming the move as completely illegal and anti-constitutional.
The move was highly criticized by member of European Commission and USA. They opined that the proposed referendum on the future of Crimea would violate the constitution and international law.
About Crimea
The Autonomous Republic of Crimea is an autonomous parliamentary republic within Ukraine and is governed by the Constitution of Crimea in accordance with the laws of Ukraine.
The capital is the city of Simferopol, located in the center of the peninsula. Crimea's area is 26,200 square kilometers.

News World news Ukraine Russian takeover of Crimea will not descend into war, says Vladimir Putin

Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, says he told the fugitive president Viktor Yanukovych that he has no political future after fleeing Ukraine. Photograph: Sky News

Vladimir Putin is confident Russia's takeover of the Crimean peninsula – where 16,000 pro-Russian troops are in control of the region's security and administrative infrastructure – will not descend into war.
During a live address on Russian television, the president insisted that the armed forces of Russia and Ukraine were "brothers in arms".
"We will not go to war with the Ukrainian people. If we do take military action, it will only be for the protection of the Ukrainian people,"said Putin, adding that there was no scenario in which Russian troops would fire "on women and children".
The Russian president continued: "Ukraine is not only our closest neighbour it is our fraternal neighbour. Our armed forces are brothers in arms, friends. They know each other personally. I'm sure Ukrainian and Russian military will not be on different sides of the barricades but on the same side. Unity is happening now in the Ukraine, where not a single shot has been fired, except in occasional scuffles."
Putin denied that the Russian-speaking soldiers occupying key Crimean military sites were Russian special forces, describing them as pro-Russian local self-defence forces.
"There are many military uniforms. Go into any local shop and you can find one," he said.
Putin was speaking shortly after gunfire rang out at the Belbek airbase in the Crimean peninsula, where a standoff between pro-Russian and Ukrainian soldiers threatened to erupt in clashes.
Warning shots were fired in the air by more than a dozen pro-Russian troops, who had taken over the military site, after about 300 Ukrainian troops marched towards them.
Putin also insisted that ousted Ukrainian leader, Viktor Yanukovych, was the legitimate leader of Ukraine and that the "so-called" acting president had no authority and the new government in Kiev illegal.
Putin gave his address as US secretary of state was due to arrive in Kiev to hold crisis talks with the new Ukrainian government, hours after Washington suspended all military engagements with Russia, including exercises and port visits, in response to Moscow sending troops into Crimea.
Responding to journalists' questions on the US position and Kerry's involvement, Putin said: "The secretary of state is important but he does not determine the policy of the United States. I am hearing many different things."
Barack Obama had warned that the US government would look at economic and diplomatic sanctions that would isolate Moscow over Russia's involvement in the Ukraine crisis. The US also put on hold trade and investment talks with Russia.
Referring to these threats from the White House, and other western leaders to eject Russia from the G8 ahead of looming talks, the president said calmly that he was still preparing for the talks: "If the leaders don't want to come, fair enough."
During his impromptu and occasionally rambling address, Putin said he had advised Yanukovych not to dismiss the feared Ukrainian riot police from Kiev, warning the ousted leader that "chaos, anarchy" would ensue if he did. Putin marked the beginning of the "chaos that reigns today" with Yanukovych's dismissal of these forces.
"Yanukovych has no political future now, I have told him that," Putin said.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Kremlin ordered Russian troops carrying out exercises near Ukraine's eastern border to return to their barracks.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine's Crimean region has so far been bloodless despite tense standoffs and threats from both sides. A supposed Russian ultimatum for two Ukrainian warships to surrender passed without action from either side on Tuesday morning.
The warships remained anchored in the Crimean port of Sevastopol early on Tuesday, a day after Ukrainian authorities claimed that Russian forces had issued an ultimatum for the ships to surrender or be seized. Russian defence ministry spokesman Vladimir Anikin said on Monday that no ultimatum had been issued.
Russia's ambassador to the UN claimed on Monday that Yanukovych had requested that Russian soldiers be sent to Crimea "to establish legitimacy, peace, law and order".
Vitaly Churkin told a UN security council meeting that Yanukovych wrote to Vladimir Putin on Saturday.
France's ambassador to the UN, Gérard Araud, said the letter was just a piece of paper handed to Yanukovych that "got his signature". Asked if the letter was phony, Araud replied: "It's not a false letter, it's a false president."
Late on Monday night, a Kremlin-linked analyst and member of Russia's public chamber, who was in Crimea for talks with local officials, said he believed there would be an "escalation of pressure" on Ukrainian forces on Tuesday, but no military action.
Sergei Markov said Ukrainian troops would be reminded that "life will be difficult for them" if they remained loyal to Kiev.
Russian troops, said to be 16,000 strong, tightened their grip on the Crimean peninsula on Monday and control all Crimean border posts, as well as military facilities in the territory and a ferry terminal in the city of Kerch, just 12 miles (20km) across the water from Russia.
On Tuesday morning, Putin told troops massed along the Russian side of the Ukrainian border to return to their permanent bases after calling a snap drill last week to check their battle-readiness.
"The commander-in-chief, President Vladimir Putin, gave the order to the troops and units taking part in military exercises to return to their permanent bases," his spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told Russian news agencies.
The drill involved army, navy and air force troops based in the central and western military districts, a vast territory that includes regions bordering Ukraine but also the Arctic.
The drill did not include any regions beyond Russia's borders such as Crimea.
The Russian defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, had said the drill would include military exercises "on Russia's borders with other countries, including Ukraine".
The drill, which was scheduled to finish on Monday, came shortly before Russian security forces began operating covertly in Crimea and Putin gained parliamentary approval for military intervention.
Moscow has insisted its military presence in Ukraine is essential for the protection of Russian-speakers in Crimea, threatened by the pro-European revolution in Kiev.
The disclosure of Yanukovych's support for Russian military intervention came amid fears that the Kremlin might carry out further landgrabs in pro-Russian eastern Ukraine.
Russia faced demands from almost all UN security council members to pull its troops out of Crimea and there was no support for military action from its close ally China. Several EU states, including the UK, have said they are considering economic sanctions against Russia.
A Kremlin aide said on Tuesday that if the US were to impose sanctions, Moscow could be forced to drop the dollar as a reserve currency and refuse to pay off any loans to American banks.
Sergei Glazyev, an adviser to the Kremlin – who is often used by the authorities to stake out a hardline stance but does not make policy – added that if Washington froze the accounts of Russian businesses and individuals, Moscow would recommend that all holders of US treasuries sell them.

Europe less reliant on Russian gas through Ukraine

LONDON: A mild winter and improved infrastructure mean Europe and Ukraine are less reliant on Russian natural gas than in past years, easing worries that the escalating crisis in Ukraine could hurt supplies.
Russia is Europe's biggest gas supplier, providing around a quarter of continental demand. Around a third of Russia's gas is exported through Ukraine, which itself also relies heavily on imports to meet its own demand.
Fears for the stability of supply to Europe increased over the weekend when Russian forces took control of Ukraine's Crimea region and President Vladimir Putin said he had the right to invade his neighbour to protect Russians there after the overthrow of ally Viktor Yanukovich.
Moscow has in the past cut supplies to Ukraine when negotiating prices with Kiev, causing shortages especially in central Europe, which gets most of its supplies from Russia.
Russia's Gazprom said on Monday that gas transit to Europe via Ukraine was normal, but it warned that it might increase prices for Kiev after the first quarter, raising concerns that gas could be used for political leverage in the crisis.
But analysts said a mild winter across Europe had left storage inventories unusually high, easing the impact of any potential supply cut.
They also said improved gas infrastructure meant much of Russia's supplies could go to western Europe via alternative routes, such as the Nord Stream pipeline, which goes through the Baltic Sea to Germany, or through a pipeline that passes Belarus and Poland and also goes into Germany.
"Low utilisation means Ukraine's gas network is of lesser importance today than in the past," Bernstein Research said on Monday in a research note. But analysts warned that a further improvement of the gas infrastructure was still needed.
"Risks for Europe exist always, that is why it should pursue even more diversification projects further and develop liquefied natural gas (LNG) markets and new connectors in central and southeastern European regions," said Anna Bulakh of the International Centre for Defence Studies.
To prepare for a potential disruption, Ukraine's gas transit monopoly Ukrtransgas has also been increasing its gas imports from Russia in recent days, upping its stocks which now stand at four months worth of supplies.
Of Ukraine's 33 billion cubic metres (bcm) storage capacity, Gas Infrastructure Europe (GiE) data shows that around 80 percent is in its far west, so even in the case of a Russian intervention in Ukraine's predominantly Russian east, most storage assets would likely remain safe from seizure.
HEALTHY STOCKS:
After a mild winter, meteorologists expect early spring to bring warmer-than-usual conditions over most of Europe, implying weak gas demand will continue, adding to already high storage levels.
A European Commission spokeswoman said that there was around 40 bcm of gas in the European Union's storage sites, equivalent to almost 10 percent of the bloc's total annual demand.
"Europe is better prepared (than in the past)," said Maria van der Hoeven, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA) in Brussels.
In Central Europe, which relies heavily on Russian supplies and was hard hit by previous cuts, Czech and Slovak inventories are filled between 35 and 45 percent, equivalent to 90 days of demand, and Polish reserves at over 70 percent of capacity. In Austria, the chief executive of national oil and gas company OMV even said that the country had enough gas to meet half a year of demand.
Hungary's gas stocks are lower, at roughly 22 percent of capacity, but because its inventory facilities are larger in volume, its reserves are still enough to meet almost two months' worth of demand.
Serbian officals also said that its underground gas depots had enough gas to help bridge a potential disruption of supplies from Russia via Ukraine and Hungary.
In Germany, Europe's biggest gas consumer and Russia's largest customer, inventories are more than 60 percent of capacity, equivalent to around 60 days of demand.
Despite the healthy stocks across Europe, benchmark UK gas futures rose by almost 10 percent compared with last Friday's close, to over 61 pence per therm on Monday afternoon.

Hagel talks Ukraine with Russian counterpart

WASHINGTON: US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel spoke by phone with his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu on Saturday after Moscow approved sending troops into Ukraine following a bloody three-month uprising there.

"Pentagon chief Chuck Hagel spoke to his Russian counterpart this morning," a US defence official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Hagel then went to the White House for a meeting on the crisis. Officials said there was "no change" to the US military's presence in the region.

Protesters raise Russian flag in Ukrainian cities

KIEV: Dozens of people were hurt in clashes on Saturday when pro-Russia activists stormed the regional government's headquarters in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv and raised the Russian flag, local media said.
The UNIAN news agency said thousands of people had gathered outside the building during a protest against the country's new leaders who ousted President Viktor Yanukovich a week ago.
The violence signalled that Ukraine's new leaders could face a challenge in mainly Russian-speaking regions that oppose the largely pro-Western course charted by the newly installed government.
The leaders of Crimea, a Black Sea peninsula with an ethnic Russian majority that is home to a Russian naval base, say they have joined forces with Russian servicemen to exert control over key buildings.
Russian parliament has approved a proposal by President Vladimir Putin to deploy troops in Ukraine.
Protests against the new authorities also took place on Saturday in other cities, including Odessa, Dnipro and Donetsk, Yanukovich's home town and power base.
The Russian flag was raised over the regional government building in Donetsk by several thousand pro-Russia activists waving the Russian tricolour and chanting "Russia! Russia!, witnesses said.
Donetsk authorities issued an appeal for a referendum to be called on the future status of the region.

Ukraine urges UN Security Council to stop Russian aggression

UNITED NATIONS: Ukraine urged an emergency session of the UN Security Council on Saturday to act now to stop Russian "aggression" in Crimea, accusing Moscow of brutally violating the world body's charter.
"We call on the Security Council now to do everything possible to stop aggression of the Russian Federation to Ukraine. There is still a chance," Ukrainian Ambassador Yuriy Sergeyev said.
Russian troops entered Ukrainian territory illegally as an "act of aggression against the state" and "their number is increasing every coming hour," he added.
Sergeyev called for the deployment of international monitors and said Russia had "brutally violated the basic principles of the charter of the United Nations."
"We urge all member states of the United Nations to demonstrate solidarity with the Ukrainian nation to protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country," Sergeyev added.