Section: San Francisco Chronicle (USA)
Pro-Russia rebels confident after making gains
STAROBESHEVE, Ukraine (AP) — As the survivor of a tank attack on a Ukrainian army truck was being carried into an ambulance, he was showered with verbal abuse by a rebel fighter. Lysenko said that regular units of the military had also been ordered to retreat from Novosvitlivka and Khryashchuvate, two towns on the main road between the Russian...
Ukrainian civilian plane crashes in Algeria
ALGIERS, Algeria (AP) — A Ukrainian civilian cargo plane crashed in the mountains near the far southern desert city of Tamanrasset in the early hours of the morning Saturday, reported the state news agency. The Antonov An-12 carrying seven crew members was on its way to Equatorial Guinea when it went down at about 2:40 a.m. about 15 kilometers (9...
EU set to slap new sanctions on Russia
BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union leaders are poised to slap additional sanctions on Russia because of what they condemn as a continued destabilization of Ukraine and a deepening military involvement by Moscow. …read more Source: San Francisco...
Ukraine says fighter jet shot down
NATO estimates that at least 1,000 Russian soldiers are in Ukraine and Kiev claimed this week that Russian tanks and armored vehicles entered the country as rebels open a new front along the Azov Sea coast. Russia consistently denies both that its forces are in Ukraine and allegations that it is supplying the rebels. […] this week, the...
EU ministers call for new sanctions against Russia
The meeting of the 28-nation bloc’s top diplomats in Milan came one day after NATO said Moscow slipped at least 1,000 Russian soldiers and much heavy weaponry into Ukraine. Fighting between Ukrainian military forces and Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine has already claimed at least 2,200 lives, according to U.N. figures. The...
Russian-backed rebels aim to push west along coast
None of the half-dozen tanks seen by reporters in the town of about 12,000 people bore Russian markings, but the packaging on their field rations said they were issued by the Russian army. The Ukrainian government the day before accused Russia of sending tanks, artillery and troops across the border, and NATO estimated at least 1,000 Russian...
Families of Russian troops in Ukraine want answers
MOSCOW (AP) — The last time Valeria Sokolova saw her husband, the 25-year-old paratrooper told her that he and his fellow soldiers were heading for military exercises in southern Russia, near the Ukrainian border. “He was vague in a way that was very unusual, and it was hard for all of them to say goodbye,” Sokolova told The...
German economic fears growing but Merkel strong
While Merkel’s measured approach has helped the perception that she is steering the country deftly through chaotic times, she also benefits from the fact that Germany is not in as vulnerable a position as others, especially Eastern European countries. If Russian President Vladimir Putin stopped gas flows from Russia completely — something...
EU weighs Ukraine policy, Russia sanctions
MILAN (AP) — European Union foreign ministers are weighing the 28-nation bloc’s stance in the Ukraine crisis amid increasing calls to beef up economic sanctions against Russia. The United States and the EU have imposed sanctions against Russian officials and the country’s financial industry. …read more Source: San Francisco...
Obama cautions against using force to solve crises
While that stance is in keeping with Obama’s long-standing aversion to military entanglements, it comes at a time when the effectiveness of his preferred options is being challenged and there are indications that some in the administration are ready to take more robust actions. In the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Obama has relied...
