Section: San Francisco Chronicle (USA)
Russia retaliates on West’s sanctions over Ukraine
Tensions rose further last month when a Malaysian jetliner was shot down over rebel-held territory, killing all 298 people aboard, and the West accused Russia of most likely providing the militants with the missiles that may have been used to bring the plane down. The ban, announced by a somber Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev at a televised...
News of the day From Across the Globe, August 8
The episode highlighted the high risk of collateral damage and civilian casualties as the Ukrainian army tries to defeat the pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. In recent days, government forces have encircled Donetsk, a separatist stronghold, but have not yet tried to storm it with ground troops, opting instead to bombard rebel positions...
Russia extends import ban over Ukraine sanctions
Russia may introduce restrictions regarding imports of planes, navy vessels and cars, Medvedev said, but added that the government will realistically assess its own production potential. The U.S. and the EU have accused Russia, which annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in March, of fomenting tensions in eastern Ukraine by supplying arms and...
3 killed, 5 wounded in east Ukraine fighting
DONETSK, Ukraine (AP) — Overnight shelling in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk killed three people and wounded five as government forces tighten their grip on the pro-Russian rebel stronghold, the city council said Thursday. In a statement on its website, the council said several residential buildings have been damaged by shelling in a...
Tensions grow in Ukraine over Russia troop buildup
The steadily advancing Ukrainian army is setting its sights on the largest rebel-held city in eastern Ukraine, while Western officials on Wednesday warned that a Russian military buildup on Ukraine’s border could herald a major incursion to protect the separatists. Russia already is showing signs of economic dismay from sanctions imposed...
Dutch premier halts search for Ukraine victims
AMSTERDAM (AP) — The Netherlands’ prime minister has called a halt to the search for remains of victims of the Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 disaster in Ukraine, saying it is too dangerous to continue. Rutte also said that information from a Ukrainian military doctor who had overseen operations in the days immediately following the...
Hagel: Growing threat of Russia invading Ukraine
STUTTGART, Germany (AP) — Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel says there is a growing threat that Russia will invade Ukraine, pointing to the increased buildup of Russian troops along the border. Hagel says he agrees with Poland’s foreign minister, who said Wednesday that the increase in Russian forces near Ukraine’s border heightened...
Putin orders import limits over sanctions
MOSCOW (AP) — President Vladimir Putin has ordered government agencies to restrict imports of food and agricultural products from the countries that have imposed sanctions against Russia over the conflict in Ukraine. The U.S. and the EU have accused Russia, which annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in March, of fomenting tensions in...
Air strike injures 2 in key Ukrainian rebel city
DONETSK, Ukraine (AP) — Air strikes and artillery fire between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian troops in the eastern city of Donetsk have brought the violence closer than ever to the city center, as Kiev’s forces move in on the rebel stronghold. The only buildings damaged in this industrial neighborhood were a warehouse, a...
Polish PM: risk grows of Russia entering Ukraine
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland’s prime minister says he has information indicating that there is a growing threat of a “direct intervention” by Russia in Ukraine. Poland’s Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski had expressed concern Tuesday night that a renewed build-up of Russian forces near Ukraine’s border heightened...
