Global 'Elders' call for compliance with Minsk agreement:
Former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev has met with former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, and other prominent former global leaders in Moscow.
The visit on April 29 by the group called The Elders comes as Russia's relations with the West are severely strained over Moscow's seizure of Crimea and the deadly conflict in eastern Ukraine.
A spokesperson for Gorbachev said, "All those involved in the discussion were unanimous that the most important thing now is to ensure compliance by all parties with the Minsk agreements," signed in February in the Belarusian capital.
The Elders were also expected to meet on April 29 with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters the meeting was not organized because of the heightened tension, saying the group's focus was on "conceptual discussions about the future of global relations."
But he said that "the current turbulent situation is just another reason to hold such a meeting," he said.
The Elders, brought together by Nelson Mandela in 2007 and now chaired by Annan, call themselves "an independent group of global leaders who work together for peace and human rights." (Interfax, TASS)
This ends our live-blogging for April 29. Be sure to check back tomorrow for our continuing coverage.
U.S. now sees Russia as directing rebels:
The United States is changing its language to reflect the depth of Russian involvement in the conflict in eastern Ukraine.
The Associated Press reported on April 30 that U.S. officials briefed on intelligence from the region say Russia has significantly deepened its command and control of separatist forces in recent months.
That has led the United States to quietly introduce a new term "combined Russian-separatist forces."
The State Department used the expression three times in a single statement last week, lambasting Moscow and the rebels for a series of cease-fire violations.
AP says U.S. intelligence agencies signed off on the new language last week, after what officials described as increasing evidence of the Russians and separatists working together, training together, and operating under a joint command structure that ultimately answers to Russia.
The shift in U.S. perceptions could have wide-ranging ramifications, including making it harder for Russia to persuade the United States and Europe to scale back sanctions that are hurting its economy, and for Washington and Moscow to cooperate on matters from nuclear nonproliferation to counterterrorism.