14:21
12.5.2014
From our news desk:
Diplomats say the European Union has agreed to impose sanctions against 13 additional individuals and two companies over the Ukraine crisis.
It is reportedly the first time the EU has targeted companies.
EU foreign ministers agreed to the sanctions at a meeting in Brussels on May 12.
Diplomats said the two Crimean companies that will be subject to sanctions were nationalized by Russia after it annexed the Crimean Peninsula.
The 13 Russians and Crimeans bring to a total of 61 the number of individuals who will face EU travel bans and asset freezes over the Ukraine crisis.
The EU action comes a day after pro-Moscow rebels held a referendum on self-rule in parts of eastern Ukraine on May 11.
The EU declared the referendum illegal and said it would not recognize its outcome. (AFP, AP and dpa)
It is reportedly the first time the EU has targeted companies.
EU foreign ministers agreed to the sanctions at a meeting in Brussels on May 12.
Diplomats said the two Crimean companies that will be subject to sanctions were nationalized by Russia after it annexed the Crimean Peninsula.
The 13 Russians and Crimeans bring to a total of 61 the number of individuals who will face EU travel bans and asset freezes over the Ukraine crisis.
The EU action comes a day after pro-Moscow rebels held a referendum on self-rule in parts of eastern Ukraine on May 11.
The EU declared the referendum illegal and said it would not recognize its outcome. (AFP, AP and dpa)
14:29
12.5.2014
14:39
12.5.2014
More reports suggesting fighting in eastern Ukraine is not bilateral, between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists:
15:40
12.5.2014
RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service has just issued the following video of a funeral in Kyiv:
In Kyiv, mourners, including members of the ultranationalist Right Sector movement, attended the funeral of Rodion Dobrodomov, a Ukrainian National Guard volunteer killed during an operation against separatists in the southeastern city of Mariupol.
In Kyiv, mourners, including members of the ultranationalist Right Sector movement, attended the funeral of Rodion Dobrodomov, a Ukrainian National Guard volunteer killed during an operation against separatists in the southeastern city of Mariupol.
16:28
12.5.2014
RFE/RL's Russian Service has been talking to Ukrainian journalist Sergei Lefter about his experiences as a captive held by pro-Russia militants for nearly three weeks in Slovyansk:
Read the full interview here.
Lefter: It was a basement. Three rooms. We slept on the floor, of course. Those who were there for a long time were allowed to sleep on a makeshift bed that we made out of some doors and some warm clothes that they gave us. And they slept on that bed. That was the biggest room. All the others -- the new ones that were brought in -- sat on benches and slept sort of half sitting. At first, I also slept like that on some sort of crates -- half sitting, half lying down. It was cold, of course. It was a basement, after all. They didn't let us out to walk. There was a toilet outside, so when you asked to use the toilet, you got to go outside for a bit, walk around a little and get some air. Those who were there for a long time -- me and a few others -- also went out to clean up. They didn't force us to -- they just came up and said, "Give us a hand." It was a request, but we took it like an order. We went out, picked up some trash, cleared the yard. For 10 or 20 minutes, we got some fresh air and walked around. For us, it was sort of a privilege.
Read the full interview here.
16:32
12.5.2014
After a full two hours of independence, the People's Republic of Donetsk has asked to join Russia.
— Shaun Walker (@shaunwalker7) May 12, 2014
16:36
12.5.2014
The #Donetsk People's Republic not that keen on independence after all, it seems.
— Piers Scholfield (@inglesi) May 12, 2014
16:47
12.5.2014
Before freaking out about the Donetsk rebels' request to join Russia, worth recalling how many times they've asked Putin to send troops.
— max seddon (@maxseddon) May 12, 2014
16:53
12.5.2014
Our news desk has just issued this on Donetsk's request to join Russia:
Pro-Russian separatists in Donetsk have declared independence and asked Russia to consider absorbing the eastern Ukrainian region.
The appeal came in a statement read out today at a news conference by Denis Pushilin, a leading member of the self-declared "Donetsk People's Republic."
It came one day after Donetsk and the neighboring Luhansk region held so-called self-rule referendums.
Organizers claimed a high voter turnout and overwhelming support for independence in the May 11 votes.
No international monitors observed the votes.
Ukraine's government and Western nations have rejected the votes as illegal.
The Russian government said the results of the votes should be "implemented in a civilized manner" and urged Ukrainian officials in Kyiv to engage in talks with the separatists.
The European Union expanded its sanctions against individuals and companies because of their involvement in the Ukraine crisis.
The appeal came in a statement read out today at a news conference by Denis Pushilin, a leading member of the self-declared "Donetsk People's Republic."
It came one day after Donetsk and the neighboring Luhansk region held so-called self-rule referendums.
Organizers claimed a high voter turnout and overwhelming support for independence in the May 11 votes.
No international monitors observed the votes.
Ukraine's government and Western nations have rejected the votes as illegal.
The Russian government said the results of the votes should be "implemented in a civilized manner" and urged Ukrainian officials in Kyiv to engage in talks with the separatists.
The European Union expanded its sanctions against individuals and companies because of their involvement in the Ukraine crisis.
