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A Ukrainian serviceman stands guard in the city of Schastye in the Luhansk region late last month.
A Ukrainian serviceman stands guard in the city of Schastye in the Luhansk region late last month.

Live Blog: Ukraine In Crisis (Archive)

Final News Summary For September 1, 2017

-- EDITOR'S NOTE: We have started a new Ukraine Live Blog as of September 2, 2017. Find it here.

-- Ukraine says it will introduce new border-crossing rules from next year, affecting citizens of “countries that pose risks for Ukraine.”

-- The Association Agreement strengthening ties between Ukraine and the European Union entered into force on September 1, marking an end to four years of political drama surrounding the accord.

-- The trial of Crimean journalist Mykola Semena will resume later this month after the first hearing in weeks produced little progress toward a resolution of the politically charged case.

*NOTE: Times are stated according to local time in Kyiv (GMT +3)

15:13 20.6.2017

13:52 20.6.2017

13:34 20.6.2017

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12:38 20.6.2017

Here is today's map of the security situation in eastern Ukraine, according to the National Security and Defense Council:

10:45 20.6.2017

10:17 20.6.2017

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10:07 20.6.2017

Ukrainian President Poroshenko To Visit Trump At White House

By RFE/RL

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is set to meet President Donald Trump in Washington on June 20, an event hailed by Kyiv as a crucial development in Ukraine's relations with the new U.S. administration.

Poroshenko's first meeting with Trump comes days before the U.S. president's expected first encounter with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the July 7-8 G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany -- a feat celebrated in Ukraine.

"It is very important that my meeting, as the president of Ukraine, in the White House will be earlier than Putin's meeting," the president's office quoted Poroshenko, who is already in the United States, as saying.

The White House has announced that Poroshenko will meet with Trump and Vice President Mike Pence on the morning of June 20.

"The president will ... meet with national security adviser H.R. McMaster with a drop-in by Vice President Mike Pence and President Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine," a June 19 statement said.

Poroshenko said that he also would meet top officials from the departments of State, Defense, Trade, and Energy.

"There never was such a powerful visit,” Poroshenko said. “And precisely in order to have the opportunity to talk about our cooperation in the security, political, and economic spheres."

Poroshenko hailed the U.S. Senate's decision to introduce new sanctions against Russia, saying that measures were a civilized mechanism "to force the aggressor to get away from Ukraine" and withdraw troops and equipment.

The U.S. Senate last week voted overwhelmingly for new sanctions punishing Russia for meddling in the 2016 U.S. election and to force Trump to get Congress's approval before easing any existing sanctions.

The move was intended to punish Russia over issues including alleged meddling in the election, which Moscow denies, and the illegal annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region in 2014.

Poroshenko’s visit comes as the conflict between Ukrainian armed forces and Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine is reportedly intensifying despite a peace deal known as the Minsk accord.

The Minsk peace agreement, brokered by France and Germany and signed by Russia and Ukraine in February 2015, calls for a cease-fire, the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the front lines, and constitutional reforms to give eastern Ukraine more autonomy.

A United Nations report on June 13 said at least 10,090 people, including 2,777 civilians, have been killed during the conflict since it began in April 2014.

With reporting by Reuters and AP
09:37 20.6.2017

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