Ukrainian authorities said on Friday they had regained control of two Crimean airports seized during an “armed invasion” by Russian forces that prompted the country’s new pro-EU leaders to appeal for protection from the West.
The spiralling tensions in a nation torn between the West and Russia are set to take another dramatic turn when ousted President Viktor Yanukovych briefs reporters in Russia on Friday after winning protection from Moscow. The head of Ukraine’s security and defence council said Russian soldiers and local pro-Kremlin militia were responsible for the dawn raids on Crimea’s main airport and another base on the southwest of the peninsula where pro-Moscow sentiment runs high.
A spokesman for Russia’s Crimea-based Black Sea Fleet denied any involvement in the airport occupations. But Ukraine’s Parliament immediately appealed to the US and Britain to uphold a 1994 pact with Russia that guaranteed the country’s sovereignty in return for it giving up its Soviet nuclear arms.
Both lawmakers and UN Security Council chair lithuania said they would also ask the world body to address the Crimea crisis at its next session — a request that would need to gain support from veto-wielding members such as Russia. Interim President Oleksandr Turchynov meanwhile attempted to regain control over unravelling security in the vast nation of 46 million by sacking the armed forces chief appointed by Yanukovych at the height of deadly protests last week.
Western Governments have been watching with increasing alarm as Kiev’s new rulers grapple with the dual threats of economic collapse and secession by Russian-speaking southern and eastern regions that had backed Yanukovych. Russian President Vladimir Putin this week stoked concerns that Moscow might use its military might to sway the outcome of Ukraine’s three-month standoff by ordering snap combat drills near the border involving 150,000 troops and nearly 900 tanks.
US Secretary of State John Kerry attempted to relieve diplomatic pressure in a crisis that has increasingly assumed Cold War overtones by announcing that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei lavrov had assured him Moscow “will respect the territorial integrity of Ukraine”.
US warns Russia over rising Ukraine tension
Washington: The Obama administration expressed growing concern on Friday over Russian intentions in Ukraine, with Secretary of State John Kerry delivering a blunt warning to Moscow against military moves in the country’s southern Crimea region that could further inflame tensions. As pro-Russia gunmen patrolled Crimean streets in armored vehicles and took over airports there, Kerry said he called Russian Foreign Minister Sergey lavrov for the second time in two days to press the Kremlin to hold to its promise to respect the former Soviet republic’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Putin’s ‘biker brothers’ to roar across Ukraine
Moscow: A group of Russian bikers called the Night Wolves that regularly rides with President Vladimir Putin is heading to Ukraine to back pro-Russian protests, its leader said on Friday. Putin has ridden a Harley-Davidson with the bikers and called them his “brothers”. He is said to be close to its long-haired leader, Alexander Zaldostanov, nicknamed “the Surgeon”. The patriotic group opposes Ukraine’s European integration and the protest movement that has taken power in Kiev.
Swiss, Austrians move to block Yanukovych assets
Geneva: Authorities in Switzerland and Austria moved on Friday to block any assets that Ukraine’s fugitive President Viktor Yanukovych and his son Aleksander, might have hidden in the Alpine nations, while the Swiss launched a corruption investigation against them. Switzerland’s governing Federal Council, which includes the president and six other Ministers, announced its decision to block all assets Yanukovych and his entourage might have in Switzerland, effective immediately.
UN Security Council agrees to meet on Ukraine
United Nations: The UN Security Council will hold private consultations to discuss the crisis in Ukraine. U.N spokesman Martin Nesirky said the council had scheduled a meeting Friday afternoon. The announcement came hours after Ukraine said Russian troops have taken up positions around a coast guard base and two airports in its Crimean peninsula, and sought help from the council to help protect it from its neighbour.