Category: Ukraine

BRUSSELS—The European Union’s energy chief will be on a mission to broker a truce in the long-running natural-gas feud between Russia and Ukraine, and avert gas shortages in Europe this winter when he travels to Moscow Friday. After more than two months of gridlock, Günther Oettinger will discuss a possible interim deal with Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak ahead of three-way talks as early as next week. The talks coincide with a sharp escalation in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. On Thursday, Ukraine accused Russia of invading the country, saying Russian troops seized the coastal town of Novoazovsk and other villages along the border. During his visit, Mr. Oettinger will warn that the "worsening of the situation is counterproductive to a solution of the gas talks and could potentially harm long-term energy relations with the Russian Federation. These talks are of common interest for all sides, also for […]

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Hess To Form MLP For North Dakota Oil, Gas Transport Assets This opinion piece presents the opinions of the author. It does not necessarily reflect the views of Rigzone. U.S. oil production is surging, and it’s helping to cripple the Russian economy. It’s a win-win situation With 40 percent of the Russian economy hinging on oil and gas sales, America’s oil and gas boom is doing more to bring President Vladimir Putin to his knees than any of the sanctions being imposed by the U.S. and Europe. Competition in the form of increased U.S. energy exports is the last thing Putin wants to see, so that’s exactly what we should do. Russia is currently the third-largest oil producer and the top exporter of natural gas, and you better believe that Putin uses these advantages to push his agenda regionally and globally. Russia needs oil prices to stay above $110 […]

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KIEV (Reuters) – Separatists backed by Russian soldiers have entered the town of Novoazovsk in southeastern Ukraine, a pro-government militia fighter said on Thursday. A military source said the separatist forces had also taken Savur-Mohyla, a hill east of Donetsk which gives strategic command over large areas of the territory. The sudden reverses for the Ukrainian military appeared to confirm the arrival of Russian forces to support the separatists, who have in recent weeks been under pressure from government forces in their strongholds of Donetsk and Luhansk, the east’s two main cities. "There is military equipment in Novoazovsk which came across the border two days ago from Russia," the fighter, from the so-called Azov battalion which supports the Ukrainian army, told Reuters by telephone. "The equipment is carrying the flags of the DNR (Donetsk People’s Republic) rebels but they are regular Russian forces," the fighter who did not wish […]

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DONETSK, Ukraine — Determined to preserve the pro-Russian revolt in eastern Ukraine, Russia reinforced what Western and Ukrainian officials described as a stealth invasion on Wednesday, sending armored troops across the border as it expanded the conflict to a new section of Ukrainian territory. The latest incursion, which Ukraine’s military said included five armored personnel carriers, was at least the third movement of troops and weapons from Russia across the southeast part of the border this week, further blunting the momentum Ukrainian forces have made in weakening the insurgents in their redoubts of Donetsk and Luhansk farther north. Evidence of a possible turn was seen in the panicky retreat of Ukrainian soldiers on Tuesday from a force they said had come over the Russian border. Russia, which has denied it is helping the insurgents, did not acknowledge the military movements. But the Russians have signaled that they would not […]

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President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia held inconclusive talks late Tuesday with the president of Ukraine, extending a reluctant hand to a new leadership vilified in Russia’s state-run news media Continue Reading

KIEV (Reuters) – Ukrainian government forces engaged with a separatist armored column near the southeastern town of Novoazovsk, about 10 km (6 miles) from the Russian border, Ukraine’s military information service said on Monday. Border guards halted the advance of the column about 5 km northeast of the town, which is on the Azov Sea, it said in a Facebook post. (Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; Writing by Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Christian Lowe )

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MOSCOW (AP) — Russia has announced plans to send a second aid convoy to rebel-held eastern Ukraine, where months of fighting have left many residential buildings in ruins. Russia unilaterally sent about 200 tractor-trailers across the border on Friday, a move that Ukraine characterized as an invasion. By Saturday, all of the vehicles had returned to Russia after delivering the goods to the hard-hit rebel stronghold of Luhansk. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Monday that Russia had notified the Ukrainian government that it was preparing to send a second convoy along the same route in the coming days. Lavrov also said distribution in Luhansk of the food, water and other goods delivered by the first convoy began Monday with the participation of the International Committee of the Red Cross.

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Trucks carrying what Russia says is humanitarian aid reached the embattled eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk, after crossing the border in what the government in Kiev denounced as an “invasion.” Tension escalated as Oana Lungescu, a spokeswoman for NATO, said by e-mail that since the middle of this month the alliance had received “multiple reports” of direct involvement of Russian airborne, air defense and special operations forces in eastern Ukraine. Vitaly Churkin, Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations, said that no Russian artillery or military forces are there. The U.S., European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization denounced the convoy’s entrance into Ukraine, with a Pentagon spokesman saying Russia continues to add troops near the border with Ukraine. The convoy is a “flagrant violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty,” White House Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes told reporters at a briefing today. Related: Russia is invading under the cover […]

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Trucks carrying what Russia says is humanitarian aid reached the embattled eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk, after crossing the border in what the government in Kiev denounced as an “invasion.” Tension escalated as Oana Lungescu, a spokeswoman for NATO, said by e-mail that since the middle of this month the alliance had received “multiple reports” of direct involvement of Russian airborne, air defense and special operations forces in eastern Ukraine. Vitaly Churkin, Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations, said that no Russian artillery or military forces are there. The U.S., European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization denounced the convoy’s entrance into Ukraine, with a Pentagon spokesman saying Russia continues to add troops near the border with Ukraine. The convoy is a “flagrant violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty,” White House Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes told reporters at a briefing today. Related: Russia is invading under the cover […]

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KIEV, Ukraine — Russia on Friday escalated tensions with Ukraine to the highest level since its stealthy invasion of Crimea in the spring, sending more than 200 trucks from a long-stalled aid convoy into rebel-held eastern Ukraine over the objections of Kiev and, NATO said, conducting military operations on Ukrainian territory. NATO officials said that the Russian military had moved artillery units inside Ukrainian territory in recent days and was using them to fire at Ukrainian forces. Russia has repeatedly denied sending troops or military hardware into Ukraine, just as it denied any link to the unidentified gunmen who paved the way for Moscow’s annexation of Crimea — until President Vladimir V. Putin stated in April that Russian troops were “of course” involved. There has been “a major escalation in Russian military involvement in eastern Ukraine since mid-August, including the use of Russian forces,” Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen […]

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