14:44
21.4.2014
From our news desk:
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree rehabilitating Crimean Tatars and other peoples who were the target of Stalin-era repression.
Putin told an April 21 meeting of government officials, "I have signed the decree on the rehabilitation of the Crimean Tatar population of Crimea, its Armenian population, Germans, Greeks and all who suffered during Stalin's purges."
An Interfax report said the same decree addresses "socioeconomic improvement" in Crimea, which Putin said "in recent years, or one can say decades, [was] practically abandoned, with no legal status and absolutely no social development and only degraded."
Most of Crimea's Tatars, who are some 12 percent of the population in Crimea, boycotted the March referendum on leaving Ukraine and joining Russia.
Putin's decree is seen as an attempt to win support from non-Russian minority groups on the Crimean Peninsula.
Putin told an April 21 meeting of government officials, "I have signed the decree on the rehabilitation of the Crimean Tatar population of Crimea, its Armenian population, Germans, Greeks and all who suffered during Stalin's purges."
An Interfax report said the same decree addresses "socioeconomic improvement" in Crimea, which Putin said "in recent years, or one can say decades, [was] practically abandoned, with no legal status and absolutely no social development and only degraded."
Most of Crimea's Tatars, who are some 12 percent of the population in Crimea, boycotted the March referendum on leaving Ukraine and joining Russia.
Putin's decree is seen as an attempt to win support from non-Russian minority groups on the Crimean Peninsula.
15:04
21.4.2014
Ukraine's Channel 5 television reporting that a pro-Russian group dispersed a pro-Ukraine rally in the Luhansk Oblast town of Rubizhne. The presenter said rally participants were beaten with bats and many were injured.
15:11
21.4.2014
The Ukrainian news agency UNIAN is reporting that unidentified people wearing camouflage have replaced the Ukrainian flag flying at the Crimean Tatar Majlis building in Simferopol.
15:22
21.4.2014
More from our news desk on Biden's visit to Kyiv:
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has arrived in Kyiv to start a visit in which he is expected to hold talks with the Ukrainian leadership.
A senior U.S. administration official said the vice president plans announce during his two-day visit a package of technical assistance to Ukraine, focused on energy and economic aid.
The official said the assistance includes technical aid to help boost efficiency in natural gas fields and extraction of unconventional energy resources.
Concerns about Ukrainian energy supplies have soared since Russia sharply increased the prices that Ukraine must pay for Russian gas. Moscow's move came as tensions surged following Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea.
Biden is scheduled to meet with acting President Oleksandr Turchynov, Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and members of Ukraine's parliament on April 22.
The United States has been a strong backer of Ukraine’s new authorities. Washington has warned it could impose more sanctions against Russia unless Moscow takes action to de-escalate the situation in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists have seized public facilities in around 10 towns.
A senior U.S. administration official said the vice president plans announce during his two-day visit a package of technical assistance to Ukraine, focused on energy and economic aid.
The official said the assistance includes technical aid to help boost efficiency in natural gas fields and extraction of unconventional energy resources.
Concerns about Ukrainian energy supplies have soared since Russia sharply increased the prices that Ukraine must pay for Russian gas. Moscow's move came as tensions surged following Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea.
Biden is scheduled to meet with acting President Oleksandr Turchynov, Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and members of Ukraine's parliament on April 22.
The United States has been a strong backer of Ukraine’s new authorities. Washington has warned it could impose more sanctions against Russia unless Moscow takes action to de-escalate the situation in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists have seized public facilities in around 10 towns.
15:42
21.4.2014
16:19
21.4.2014
Looking at a White House pool report on Vice President Joe Biden's trip to Ukraine. It says a senior administration official spoke to reporters during the flight and briefed them on what to expect during the two-day visit:
* During his meetings with Ukrainian officials on April 21, Biden will call for national unity and the implementation of last week's Geneva agreement.
* On the issue of energy, he will be looking into the prospects of reversing the flow of natural gas heading to Slovakia and Hungary in order to provide Ukraine with short-term supplies.
* Biden will speak with the government about the country's needs and discuss various avenues of U.S. economic, energy, and governance assistance.
* The vice president will seek to help the government in Kyiv to convince Ukrainians in the east and south that they will benefit from U.S. assistance.
* During his meetings with Ukrainian officials on April 21, Biden will call for national unity and the implementation of last week's Geneva agreement.
* On the issue of energy, he will be looking into the prospects of reversing the flow of natural gas heading to Slovakia and Hungary in order to provide Ukraine with short-term supplies.
* Biden will speak with the government about the country's needs and discuss various avenues of U.S. economic, energy, and governance assistance.
* The vice president will seek to help the government in Kyiv to convince Ukrainians in the east and south that they will benefit from U.S. assistance.
16:34
21.4.2014
18:13
21.4.2014
From our news desk:
A mediator from the OSCE, the Organization For Security And Cooperation in Europe, has held his first meeting with pro-Russian separatists in the eastern Ukrainian town of Slovyansk.
The OSCE has been charged with overseeing implementation of the agreement on de-escalation in Ukraine that was agreed on April 17 in Geneva between representatives of Ukraine, Russia, the United States, and European Union.
In Slovyansk, OSCE official Mark Etherington said he held two hours of talks on April 21 with Vyacheslav Ponomaryov, the leader of pro-Russian separatists in the town.
In his remarks to reporters, Etherington gave no indication of whether Ponomaryov and the pro-Russian activists were ready to disarm and vacate occupied public buildings, as called for in the Geneva agreement.
The OSCE has been charged with overseeing implementation of the agreement on de-escalation in Ukraine that was agreed on April 17 in Geneva between representatives of Ukraine, Russia, the United States, and European Union.
In Slovyansk, OSCE official Mark Etherington said he held two hours of talks on April 21 with Vyacheslav Ponomaryov, the leader of pro-Russian separatists in the town.
In his remarks to reporters, Etherington gave no indication of whether Ponomaryov and the pro-Russian activists were ready to disarm and vacate occupied public buildings, as called for in the Geneva agreement.
08:12
22.4.2014
Good morning, starting up the live blog for another day. Here's our latest news wrap.
08:14
22.4.2014
A good example of how many in the Maidan feel about the East.