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Ukraine crisis: EU to weigh far-reaching sanctions on Russia

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting in his Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow, on March 27, 2014.Putin said today Russia should create its own national payment settlement system, in a bid to reduce economic dependence on the West amid the controversy over Moscow’s seizure of Crimea. AFP PHOTO / RIA-NOVOSTI / POOL/ ALEXEI NIKOLSKY (Photo credit should read ALEXEI NIKOLSKY/AFP/Getty Images) EU diplomats will weigh sweeping Russian sanctions on Thursday that include a proposal to ban all Europeans from purchasing any new debt or stock issued by Russia’s largest banks, according to a proposal seen by the Financial Times. The sanctions measure, contained in a 10-page options memo prepared by the European Commission and distributed to national capitals, also proposes barring the Russian banks from listing new issues on European exchanges, preventing them from using London or other EU stock markets to raise funds from non-Europeans. More On this […]

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Russia’s Message on Jet: Conciliation and Bluster

Russia presented a combination of conciliation and bluster on Monday over its handling of the downed Malaysia Airlines jet, with President Vladimir V. Putin seemingly probing for a way out of the crisis without appearing to compromise with the West. On one hand, he offered conciliatory words in a video statement , oddly released in the middle of the night, while the separatists allied with Moscow in southeastern Ukraine released the bodies of the victims and turned over the black box flight recorders from the doomed aircraft to Malaysian officials. However, two senior military officers forcefully demanded that the United States show publicly any proof that rebels fired the fatal missile, and again suggested that the Ukrainian military shot down the Malaysia Airlines jet despite the fact that Ukraine has not used antiaircraft weapons in the fight along its eastern border. Mr. Putin seemed to respond to […]

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West Raises Pressure on Russia in Downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17

The U.S. accused Russia of hiding evidence after the downing of Flight 17 and cited video posted on social media. An image from footage released by the Ukrainian Interior Ministry purports to show a truck carrying a missile system out of Ukraine toward Russia. Associated Press The U.S. leveled its most-explicit allegations yet of Russia’s involvement in the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 and subsequent efforts to conceal evidence, and European leaders threatened broad new sanctions against Moscow, marking a turning point in the standoff between the West and the Kremlin. Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday warned Russian President Vladimir Putin "for the last time" to accede to Western demands to disarm pro-Russian separatists and stabilize Ukraine. (Follow the latest updates on the Malaysia Airlines crash in Ukraine.) Officials in Europe, meanwhile, departed from their initially muted reaction as anger grew across the continent over the […]

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Ukraine’s gas sector coping, EU says

Some of the proposals offered to break the Russian grip on the Ukrainian energy sector are working, a top European official said Thursday in Brussels. Outgoing European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso updated leaders in Brussels on the status of trilateral negotiations between the European Union, Russia and Ukraine. Simmering conflict in Ukraine, a former Soviet republic, grew out of its late 2013 decision to look beyond the Russian sphere of influence. Ukraine earlier this year signed an association agreement with the European Union. Beyond strategic areas, Barroso said energy supply to Ukraine is an area of concern. Russia suspended gas deliveries to Ukraine because of debt woes and similar rows in 2006 and 2009 left downstream European consumers in the cold. At this stage, the president said, Ukraine is meeting its energy needs with domestic sources and alternative suppliers. Some of its neighbors have reversed gas flows toward […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Ukraine's gas sector coping, EU says

Some of the proposals offered to break the Russian grip on the Ukrainian energy sector are working, a top European official said Thursday in Brussels. Outgoing European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso updated leaders in Brussels on the status of trilateral negotiations between the European Union, Russia and Ukraine. Simmering conflict in Ukraine, a former Soviet republic, grew out of its late 2013 decision to look beyond the Russian sphere of influence. Ukraine earlier this year signed an association agreement with the European Union. Beyond strategic areas, Barroso said energy supply to Ukraine is an area of concern. Russia suspended gas deliveries to Ukraine because of debt woes and similar rows in 2006 and 2009 left downstream European consumers in the cold. At this stage, the president said, Ukraine is meeting its energy needs with domestic sources and alternative suppliers. Some of its neighbors have reversed gas flows toward […]

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U.S. slaps toughest sanctions yet on Russia, targets Putin allies

President Barack Obama imposed the toughest U.S. sanctions yet on Russia, striking at the heart of Vladimir Putin’s powerbase by targeting companies closest to him over what Washington says is Moscow’s failure to curb violence in Ukraine. By imposing penalties on Russia’s largest oil producer Rosneft, its second largest gas producer Novatek and its third largest bank Gazprombank, Washington targeted Putin’s allies, many of whom have become wealthy during his tenure. The sanctions, which in effect close medium- and long-term dollar funding, were also put on Vnesheconombank, VEB, a state-owned bank that acts as payment agent for the government, and eight arms firms, including the producer of the Kalashnikov assault rifle. The sanctions did not freeze those four companies’ assets, or stop U.S. firms from doing business with them and several were quick to say it was business as usual. But Russia’s rouble-traded stock market and […]

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U.S., EU Escalate Russia Sanctions as Putin Holds Firm

The U.S. and the European Union imposed the most aggressive sanctions to date on Russian business and said more may follow, acting after weeks of threats to squeeze the $2 trillion economy over the confrontation in Ukraine. The benchmark Micex index dropped 1.9 percent as of 10:54 a.m. today in Moscow to the lowest since May 30 and the ruble slid 0.7 percent against the central bank’s basket of currencies after the Obama administration unveiled the sanctions. Targeted companies include OAO Rosneft (ROSN) , Russia’s largest oil company, natural gas producer OAO Novatek (NVTK) , OAO Gazprombank, the country’s third-largest lender, and eight defense firms. EU leaders agreed to blacklist companies and halt lending to public-sector projects in Russia. “These sanctions are significant,” U.S. President Barack Obama said yesterday at the White House. “But they are also targeted, designed to have maximum impact on Russia while limiting any spillover […]

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Russia warns Ukraine of ‘irreversible consequences’ after cross-border shelling

Russia is warning Ukraine of “irreversible consequences” after cross-border shelling from the battle-worn east struck Russian territory Sunday, reportedly killing one Russian citizen and injuring two others. “This incident highlights the extremely dangerous escalation of tensions in the Russian-Ukrainian border and may have irreversible consequences, the responsibility for which lies on the Ukrainian side,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement Sunday, calling the incident an “aggressive action.” Russian officials summoned the Ukrainian charge d’affaires to the foreign ministry in Moscow to protest the civilian’s death, which they say occurred when the Ukrainian army shot mine shells from the Donetsk area into Russia’s Rostov region on the other side of the border, hitting a residential building. Ukrainian officials vehemently deny they have fired on Russian territory, and are questioning whether Russia is making up details surrounding the incident simply to build a case against Ukraine’s military. “Forces of […]

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Pro-Russian Rebels in Ukraine Match Government Cease-Fire

Pro-Russian separatists declared a cease-fire Monday in a surprise move that they said they hoped would lead to a settlement of the conflict in eastern Ukraine. The announcement came as rebel leaders met with representatives of the Ukrainian government in Kiev, including the former president, Leonid D. Kuchma, as well as the Russian ambassador to Ukraine and a representative of the acting chairman of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. “In answer to the cease-fire by Kiev, we commit to a cease-fire from our side,” said Aleksandr Borodai, the prime minister of the self-declared Donetsk People’s Republic. Mr. Borodai, a Russian citizen, said the cease-fire would last until Friday, matching the timeline of the cease-fire announced last week by the new Ukraine president, Petro O. Poroshenko. “We also hope that in the time of this bilateral cease-fire,” Mr. Borodai continued, “we can agree to […]

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Breakaway regions agree to observe Ukrainian ceasefire

A pro-Russian rebel leader in Ukraine’s breakaway east said Monday that separatist groups would observe a weeklong ceasefire, a move that raises hope of a breakthrough in the crisis but could nonetheless be undone by fighting on the ground. Alexander Borodai, the self-proclaimed prime minister of the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic, said rebels would lay down their arms in line with a  cease-fire declared Friday by the Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. "The consultation ended with authorities of the Luhansk and Donetsk Republics agreeing to maintain a ceasefire for their part until the 27th," Borodai said, following the first face-to-face meeting between separatists and intermediaries from the Ukrainian and Russian governments. It comes despite claims from both sides of numerous violations of the proposed ceasefire over the weekend and amid ongoing skepticism over the chances of a more permanent peace. Borodai’s comments came after Monday’s meeting in Donetsk attended by, […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple