Sunday Times 2
Russia open to ‘equal’ dialogue with West on Ukraine: Lavrov
View(s):MOSCOW, March 08, 2014 (AFP) -Russia is open to having an “honest, equal” dialogue with foreign states on the crisis in Ukraine, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said today.
“We are open to an honest, equal and objective dialogue with our foreign partners to find a way to help all of Ukraine come out of the crisis,” Lavrov said at a televised news conference in Moscow with his Tajik counterpart, in a clear reference to the West.
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (L) and U.S.Secretary of State John Kerry meet to discuss the Ukraine crisis, at the Conference on International Support to Libya, in Rome on March 6 (REUTERS)
Pro-Russian activists rallied in the eastern heartland of Ukraine’s ousted leader after Moscow threatened to cut off gas to its ex-Soviet neighbour following its tilt toward the West.
Rallies in industrial cities that rely on Russia for trade and whose cultural roots lie closer to Moscow than Kiev come as Kremlin-backed troops tighten their grip on the flashpoint peninsula of Crimea.
The predominantly Russian-speaking southern and eastern swathes of Ukraine have been in upheaval since three months of deadly protests brought new pro-European leaders to power in Kiev whom they view with disdain and mistrust.
The Kremlin says the new rulers have fomented a lawless atmosphere of intimidation against ethnic Russians that President Vladimir Putin says prompted him to threaten to use force in Ukraine — a shock decision that has sparked the worst East-West standoff since the Cold War.
Now activists who have set up a round-the-clock picket on Donetsk’s central Lenin Square under a red Soviet flag with the golden hammer and sickle are calling for a secession referendum just like the one planned in Crimea on March 16.
Similar protests have hit nearby Russian-speaking cities such as Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk.
The imposing Donetsk city adminstration building has flown both Russian and Ukrainian flags after being repeatedly raided in the past week by irate protesters from both sides. The city was the regional stronghold of deposed president Viktor Yanukovych, who fled to Russia late last month.
Boomerang’ sanctions
Russia says it has stepped up protection of its Black Sea Fleet base in Crimea and is working together with local self-defence militias but refuses to acknowledge it has deployed extra troops to the peninsula.
Ukrainian border guard general Mykola Kovil said Friday there were now 30,000 Russian troops in Crimea — higher than the 25,000 allowed under an existing agreement with Ukraine.
Successive attempts by 47 unarmed military and civilian observers from the Organisation from Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSE) to verify what is actually happening in Crimea came to nothing after gunmen blocked their entrance from the Ukrainian mainland.
Moscow blamed the OSCE on Friday for trying to enter Crimea “without considering the opinions and recommendations of the Russian side” despite a push by US President Barack Obama for monitors to be let through as part of an “off-ramp” to de-escalate the crisis.
Russia’s decision to flex its military muscle for the first time since it waged a brief war with Georgia in 2008 has prompted Washington to slap visa bans and asset freezes on top Moscow officials involved.
The European Union has also threatened to toughen economic sanctions against Russia should it fail to immediately open talks with Ukraine.
But Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told US Secretary of State John Kerry that any punitive measures against Moscow would strike back like a “boomerang” against Washington.The foreign ministry also warned EU powers that sanctions were a double-edged sword that could hurt Russia’s trading partners.