Pulling back a huge aid convoy whose entry into Ukraine stirred Western outrage, Russia on Saturday cheered the completion of what it called a successful humanitarian mission, while Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany visited the Ukrainian capital and pledged more than $690 million for the rebuilding of war-ravaged areas of eastern Ukraine and aid to refugees.
Ukraine’s military, determined to reconquer eastern areas seized by rebels, has stepped up a drive to oust the separatists from their last major strongholds, encircling the cities of Donetsk and Luhansk, the destination of the Russian aid convoy that crossed into Ukraine on Friday.
Russia’s decision …read more
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
