World News liveblog
Reuters live coverage of events around the world. Follow @ReutersWorld on Twitter for top news and @ReutersLive for live video events.
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.@PeaceCorps volunteers confirm that #Ukraine program has been suspended indefinitely due to unrest throughout the country. A real loss.by Christopher Miller via twitter 4/8/2014 6:36:51 PM -
Ukraine to get help from new EU support group
BRUSSELS - The European Union will set up a special support group to help Ukraine stabilize its precarious economy and political situation, an EU diplomat said on Tuesday.
Concern is growing that Moscow could be preparing for further military action in Ukraine and on Tuesday U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry accused Russian agents and special forces of stirring separatist unrest in eastern Ukraine.
The support group, whose creation is expected to be announced on Wednesday, would bring together "several dozen people" to work out priorities for Ukraine, an EU diplomat said, asking not to be named.
(Reporting by Barbara Lewis; editing by Adrian Croft) -
Armed protesters visible through the broken glass of the #Ukraine state security building they are occupying reuters.com/article/2014/0…by Thomas Grove via twitter 4/8/2014 6:12:15 PM -
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See the incredible way famous artists are declaring their support for Ukraine huff.to/1hXQaIuby Huffington Post via twitter 4/8/2014 5:12:34 PM -
Ukraine Says Separatists Hold Hostages; Activists Deny Charge
LUHANSK - Ukraine's state security service on Tuesday said that pro-Russian separatists had placed explosives in a building they seized in the eastern city of Luhansk and were holding 60 people hostage.
But the activists, who have controlled the region's state security headquarters since storming it on Sunday, denied both charges. They said they had no explosives, but had seized an armoury full of automatic rifles.
"The criminals have rigged the building with explosives ... and are holding around 60 people, threatening them with weapons and explosives," the SBU security service said in a statement. "They are using terrorist measures."
But one of the protest leaders told Reuters that there were no explosives and that no one was being prevented from leaving the building.
Read more here. -
Protesters In East Ukraine Deny Having Explosives, Holding Hostages
LUHANSK - Protesters occupying the state security building in Luhansk, eastern Ukraine, on Tuesday denied a charge that they had wired the building with explosives and were holding people against their will.
"There are no explosives, no hostages. We do not need hostages to get what we want," said Anton, one of the protesters who described himself as a coordinator of the action.
Earlier Ukraine's state security service said the protesters were using weapons to hold about 60 people against their will.
(Reporting by Thomas Grove; Writing By Richard Balmforth; Editing by Conor Humphries) -
Russia is not much concerned at inconvenience or short-term financial costs if it makes long-term strategic gains.Many indicators and warnings of preparation for a possible invasion are in place, including logistics, food supplies, medical services, and interior troops which would be used for control of occupied areas.But this is not necessarily an indication that Russia will invade, simply that Russia wishes to be prepared to do so given the opportunity or the perceived necessity.-- Keir Giles, director of the Conflict Studies Research Centre, a group specializing in Russian military affairs, from the BBC story "Is Russia ready to move into eastern Ukraine?" -
Russia's Lavrov, EU's Ashton discuss Ukraine crisis
MOSCOW - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton on Tuesday discussed possible international efforts to find a solution to the Ukraine crisis, the Russian ministry said in a statement.
In a telephone conversation initiated by Ashton, Lavrov reaffirmed Russia's proposal for "an authentic Ukraine-wide dialogue involving all political forces and regions" aimed at reaching agreement on constitutional reforms, it said.
(Writing by Steve Gutterman; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall) -
Secretary of State John Kerry pauses as he testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee while on Capitol Hill in Washington, April 8, 2014. Kerry squarely blamed Russian agents on Tuesday for separatist unrest in eastern Ukraine, saying Moscow could be trying to lay the groundwork for military action like in Crimea. REUTERS/Larry Downing
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Protesters in Luhansk, Ukraine, deny having explosives and holding hostages in state security building: Reuters
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Ukrainian troops reassert control in restive Kharkiv region, arresting about 70 pro-Russian protesters: nyti.ms/1mZdnurby New York Times World via twitter 4/8/2014 4:12:02 PM -
In sniper deaths, Yatseniuk puts blame on Yanukovich
Ukraine's prime minister told Reuters today that he believes ousted Ukrainian leader Viktor Yanukovich was behind the mid-February sniper shootings in Kiev that killed dozens of protesters. Yatseniuk also alluded to possible Russian involvement in the operation, noting that some members of Russia's security force had been in the Ukrainian security service headquarters at the time.
Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said that 12 snipers had been identified and arrested, BBC reported.
In the meantime, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov delivered a wicked burn on the U.S. over Crimea, telling western officials, in essence, to get over it. "What can one advise our U.S. colleagues to do?" Ryabkov asked, rhetorically, to Interfax. "Spend more time in the open, practice yoga, stick to food-combining diets, maybe watch some comedy sketch shows on TV."
Keep reading for more live news and updates throughout the day. And for those of you not too busy stretching out in a downward dog, munching on your food-combining diet meal or watching "Saturday Night Live" reruns, here are a few Reuters stories to get you started:
- NATO accuses Russia of breaking international commitments
- Russia protests over German minister's Nazi-Crimea comparison
- Video: Dark cloud over Crimea's tourism coast -
Russia raises gas prices for Ukraine by 80 percent
Russia raised the gas price for Ukraine on Thursday for the second time this week, almost doubling it in three days and piling pressure on a neighbor on the brink of bankruptcy in the crisis over Crimea.
The increase, announced in Moscow by Russian natural gas producer Gazprom, means Ukraine will pay 80 percent more for its gas than before the initial increase on Monday.
Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk said the latest move, two weeks after Moscow annexed Ukraine's Crimea region, was unacceptable and warned that he expected Russia to increase pressure on Kiev by limiting supply to his country.
"There is no reason why Russia would raise the gas price for Ukraine ... other than one - politics," Yatseniuk told Reuters in an interview in the Ukrainian capital Kiev.
Click here to read more. -
by MFA Russia via twitter 4/3/2014 6:25:34 PM -
A woman takes a 'selfie' with a mobile phone in front of activists from the Internet Party of Ukraine during a rally near the Ukrainian Central Elections Commission in Kiev April 3, 2014. The party leader "Darth Vader" has submitted documents to the Ukrainian Central Elections Commission to register as a candidate for Ukraine's May 25 presidential election. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov
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Russia detains 25 Ukrainians suspected of attacks: agency
MOSCOW - Russia has detained 25 Ukrainians suspected of preparing terror attacks in the southern and central part of the country, RIA news agency quoted a statement by the Federal Security Service (FSB) as saying on Thursday.
The detained, who were reported as being members of ultra-nationalist movements, were planning attacks between March 14 and 17, it said. The press service of the Ukrainian state security service (SBU) dismissed the report as "nonsense".
The announcement came hours after the SBU said FSB staff had been present at the SBU headquarters during of anti-government protests in Kiev.
(Reporting By Alexei Anishchuk, Editing by Timothy Heritage) -
Russia recalls ambassador to NATO amid Ukraine tensions. cnn.it/1hFdqLfby cnnbrk via twitter 4/3/2014 6:00:52 PM -
Deutsche Post stops accepting Crimea-bound letters
FRANKFURT - Deutsche Post is no longer accepting letters bound for Crimea after its Ukrainian counterpart told the Geneva-based Universal Postal Union (UPU) that delivery to the region was no longer guaranteed, the German postal company said on Thursday.
A Deutsche Post spokesman said that Ukraine's advisory to the UPU after Russia's annexation of Crimea also affects delivery of parcels and packages sent via the traditional postal networks of both countries.
The UPU is a United Nations agency that coordinates postal policies among member nations and the worldwide postal system.
The spokesman said that urgent documents and goods shipped via the DHL express courier unit of Deutsche Post were not affected because DHL has its own private logistics network in Ukraine and could therefore continue deliveries.
Deutsche Post, the world No. 1 postal and logistics group, still dominates the German mail market but generates the bulk of its revenue from its DHL logistics divisions.
(Reporting by Matthias Inverardi; Writing by Marilyn Gerlach; Editing by David Goodman) -
Ukraine security official: Yanukovich responsible for mass killings
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Report of Ukrainians planning attacks on Russia is "nonsense": Ukrainian state security services
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Russia has detained 25 Ukrainians suspected of preparing terror attacks: RIA, citing federal security serviceby Reuters World via twitter 4/3/2014 5:34:24 PM -
Russian tank crew members wait for their T-72B tank to be ready to move off a train shortly after Russian tanks arrived at a train station in the Crimean settlement of Gvardeiskoye near the Crimean city of Simferopol March 31, 2014. Russia is withdrawing a motorized infantry battalion from a region near Ukraine's eastern border, the Russian Defence Ministry was quoted as saying by state news agencies on Monday. REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis
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White House: Kerry to speak to Lavrov again about Ukraine
WASHINGTON - The White House said on Monday that Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had agreed to speak again about ways to resolve the crisis in Ukraine but that no date for such a conversation had been set.
Kerry and Lavrov spoke by phone about the issue earlier on Monday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
White House spokesman Jay Carney also noted reports of possible drawdowns by Russian troops on the Ukraine border but said the administration had not seen that yet.
(Reporting by Jeff Mason and Roberta Rampton; Editing by Doina Chiacu) -
Reader Comment: The West is being ridiculous, they need to treat Putin like he's a republican.The last debt ceiling dispute for example ,where Obama just said a clean bill or nothing is a good model. Now Putin has full control of the situation and the West is trying to manage it,Putin is free to just toy with them. They need to shift gears go all out, cut any and all ties with Russia unless they pull out of Crimea and let Putin scramble to find a way out.The west ,right now, is just making it very clear that they don't want to incur any costs no matter what he does and Putin is just pushing a little bit further and further,slowly to let the West just accept the situation.This way, little by little, he'll keep taking for the next decade or two because nobody is even trying to stop him.Turn the tables on him already, the day he invaded Crimea he went too far ,he won't stop unless he's forced to and sooner that happens the better. -
Secretary Kerry and Russia's foreign minister have agreed to speak again about Ukraine crisis: White House
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That's a wrap on Hagel. Thanks for watching.
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Buildup of Russian forces on Ukraine border numbers in the tens of thousands: Hagel
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DoD: "Our concern is for the territorial integrity & sovereignty of Ukraine & 4 the Ukrainian people & their nation" atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/natosour…by NATOSource via twitter 3/27/2014 8:04:28 PM -
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Ukraine parliament fails to support first bid to pass anti-crisis law required for IMF deal, deputies continue discussion
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House now moving to a roll call vote on the Ukraine sanctions bill, 2/3rds required. Senate on amendment before final passageby Mike Memoli via twitter 3/27/2014 4:14:58 PM -
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Senate is on a quorum call. Vote on Ukraine bill expected at 12 noon EDT.
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I think that Putin right now doesn't yet know himself what he's going to do relative to south and eastern Ukraine: Sen. Corker
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The events in Ukraine continue to unfold - so I hope we'll come back again, as changes occur: Sen. Corker
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What we need to do as a nation again [...] we're supporting Ukraine with this bill. We're also authorizing some assistance to our allies in the region: Sen. Corker
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I do hope we'll turn the volume up. And I do hope we'll go ahead and [add sanctions] to some additional companies in Russia: Sen. Corker
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Chairman @RepEdRoyce and @RepEliotEngel concluding #bipartisan support for #Ukraine Support Act, #HR4278 on @HouseFloor #Russia #Crimeaby ForeignAffGOP via twitter 3/27/2014 3:25:16 PM -
If you throw everthing but the kitchen sink on the front end, then Russia really doesn't have anything to lose: Sen. Corker, on sanctions
Putin says Russia will follow up fast after Ukraine call with Biden
MOSCOW Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Russia would send ideas to Washington within a week to follow up his talks with U.S. President Joe Biden on the Ukraine crisis.
