Ukraine Tag

President Barack Obama on Thursday announced a new round of expanded sanctions in response to Russia’s intervention in Ukraine. The additional sanctions target 20 Russian officials and influential individuals, as well as a Russian bank, according to Obama's statement and a list published by the Treasury Department.  These follow an initial round of sanctions announced earlier in the week that targeted 11 Russian and Ukrainian individuals. Speaking from the South Lawn of the White House Thursday, the president again denounced Russia’s recent actions in Ukraine, including its move to annex Crimea, and he outlined additional sanctions the United States would be imposing in response. “Over the last several days, we’ve continued to be deeply concerned by events in Ukraine,” Obama said. “We’ve seen an illegal referendum in Crimea, an illegitimate move by the Russians to annex Crimea, and dangerous risks of escalation, including threats to Ukrainian personnel in Crimea and threats to southern and eastern Ukraine as well.  These are all choices that the Russian government has made, choices that have been rejected by the international community, as well as the government of Ukraine.” “And because of these choices, the United States is today moving – as we said we would – to impose additional costs on Russia. Based on the executive order that I signed in response to Russia’s initial intervention in Ukraine, we’re imposing sanctions on more senior officials of the Russian government. In addition, we are today sanctioning a number of other individuals with substantial resources and influence who provide material support to the Russian leadership, as well as a bank that provides material support to these individuals.” The president’s announcement came shortly after Russia's lower house of parliament on Thursday approved a treaty to annex Crimea from Ukraine. From Reuters:

Following Sunday's referendum vote in Crimea to break from Ukraine and join Russia, President Obama on Monday announced a series of new sanctions. (Video at end of this post). From Reuters:

U.S. President Barack Obama imposed sanctions on 11 Russians and Ukrainians on Monday blamed for Moscow's military seizure of Crimea, including ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich, and Vladislav Surkov and Sergei Glazyev, two aides to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin himself, suspected in the West of trying to reconstitute as much as possible of the former Soviet Union under Russian authority, was not on the blacklist. In Brussels, the EU's 28 foreign ministers agreed on a list of 21 Russian and Ukrainian officials to be subject to travel bans and asset freezes for their roles in the events. The EU did not immediately publish their names. Washington and Brussels said more measures could follow in the coming days if Russia does not back down and formally annexes Crimea. "Today's actions send a strong message to the Russian government that there are consequences for their actions that violate the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, including their actions supporting the illegal referendum for Crimean separation," the White House said. A senior Obama administration official said there was "concrete evidence" that some ballots in the Crimea referendum arrived in some Crimean cities pre-marked.

Speaking from the White House this morning, President Obama said, “as I told President Putin yesterday, the referendum in Crimea was a clear violation of Ukrainian Constitutions and international law, and it will not be recognized by the international community.” Obama then went on to outline “a series of measures that will continue to increase the cost on Russia and on those responsible for what is happening in Ukraine.” Among those measures are sanctions on a number of specific individuals and entities, as well as continued consultations with European partners on additional measures. From Obama’s statement Monday (transcript from the Washington Post):

In what will likely come as little surprise to anyone who has been following the events in Ukraine, Russian state media are reporting that early exit polls show Crimea has voted to break with Ukraine and join Russia.  Official results are expected later. From Reuters:

Russian state media said Crimeans voted overwhelmingly to break with Ukraine and join Russia on Sunday, as Kiev accused Moscow of pouring forces into the peninsula and warned separatist leaders "the ground will burn under their feet". RIA news agency said 93 percent backed annexation, citing an exit poll released as voting ended at 8 p.m. (1800 GMT). Another Russian agency said turnout was over 80 percent. Caught in an East-West crisis reminiscent of the Cold War, Kiev said Russia's build-up of forces in the Black Sea region was in "crude violation" of an international treaty, and announced plans to arm and train 20,000 members of a newly-created National Guard to defend the nation.

The White House had already denounced the vote ahead of the official results, calling the referendum illegal and citing Russian intimidation.

Tensions are mounting ahead of a planned referendum Sunday to determine whether or not Crimea will break from Ukraine and join Russia. A few updates on the situation... From AFP via Yahoo News:

Ukraine accused Russia on Saturday of invading a region bordering Crimea and vowed to use "all necessary measures" to ward off an attack that came on the eve of the peninsula's breakaway vote. The dramatic escalation of the most serious East-West crisis since the Cold War set a tense stage for the referendum on Crimea's secession from Ukraine in favour of Kremlin rule -- a vote denounced by both the international community and Kiev. The predominantly Russian-speaking Black Sea region of two million people was overrun by Kremlin-backed troops days after the February 22 fall in Kiev of a Moscow-backed regime and the rise of nationalist leaders who favour closer ties with the West. President Vladimir Putin defended Moscow's decision to flex its military muscle by arguing that ethnic Russians in Ukraine needed "protection" from violent ultranationalists who had been given free reign by the new Kiev administration. But Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had told Secretary of State John Kerry in London on Friday that Moscow "has no, and cannot have, any plans to invade the southeast region of Ukraine."

The full statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine website demanded Russia withdraw forces from the territory of Ukraine immediately.

“The 1980’s are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back”...

Who's really in charge?...

After voting Saturday to remove President Viktor Yanukovich from office, Ukraine’s Parliament on Sunday named its speaker to serve as acting President. From Reuters: The speaker of the Ukrainian parliament, the closest confidante of freed opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko, was temporarily handed the role of president on...

Update 2:35 p.m. Eastern -- Julia Tymoshenko addresses crowd in Kiev: The President of Ukraine has fled Kiev but it is unclear if he has resigned. (UPDATE: Refuses to resign, calls protests a facsist coup d'etat.)

BREAKING: Ukraine's president says he won't resign and likens country's political crisis to Nazis' rise.

— The Associated Press (@AP) February 22, 2014

BREAKING: Ukraine’s Parliament has voted unanimously Saturday to remove President Viktor Yanukovych from office. http://t.co/dQAIz7kc95

— CNN (@CNN) February 22, 2014

FIRST PHOTO: Yulia #Tymoshenko after release from prison http://t.co/urSnW60PHK pic.twitter.com/ZFv11ase7q

— RT (@RT_com) February 22, 2014

Kiev is in the hands of the opposition, and government security forces have vowed to stay neutral, reports Reuters:

Ukraine security chiefs signal allegiance to protesters The heads of four Ukrainian security bodies, including the police's Berkut anti-riot units, appeared in parliament on Saturday and declared they would not take part in any conflict with the people. They represented the paratroop unit of the military, the Berkut anti-riot police, Alfa special operations unit and military intelligence. The Interior Ministry had already signalled its allegiance to anti-government protests under a new minister from the ranks of the opposition.

The former Prime Minister and key opposition leader (background here) is to be freed from prison, via Sky News:

Jailed Ukrainian opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko is set for release as part of political decisions taken at an emergency session of parliament in Kiev. Initial reports claimed she had already been freed, but these were later clarified by aide Natasha Lysova who said the parliamentary decision meant she must be freed immediately. AFP news agency, quoting opposition MP Mykola Katerynchuk, reported President Viktor Yanukovich had promised to resign over the conflict.

In an ominous sign, reflecting that there are anti-Semitic elements in the opposition (as we previously noted), the Chief Rabbi of Ukraine has urged Jews to flee, as reported by Haaretz:

There are conflicting reports about an agreement reached between the government and opposition. Reuters reports as of 7:51 8:23 Eastern, Yanukovich announces early Ukraine poll but no deal yet with opposition:

Ukraine's President Viktor Yanukovich announced plans for early elections on Friday in a series of concessions to his pro-European opponents, but it was unclear whether they would accept an EU-mediated deal to end violence that has left dozens dead.... Yanukovich said Ukraine, which emerged from the wreckage of the Soviet Union in 1991, would revert to a previous constitution under which the president had less authority. "I am also starting the process of a return to the 2004 constitution with a rebalancing of powers towards a parliamentary republic," he said. "I call for the start of procedures for forming a government of national unity." Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, whose foreign minister is part of a European Union team trying to broker a compromise, said he could not be certain that the "worst-case scenario" could be avoided. "The threats are still there," he told a news conference in Warsaw. The EU mediators said the opposition was seeking last minute changes, but they still expected a deal to be signed on Friday. There were fist fights in parliament as the political tension mounted.

We will update as more in known. Update: Accord Is Signed in Ukraine but Doubts Are Strong:

The embattled president of Ukraine and leaders of the opposition signed a political deal on Friday aimed at ending a spiral of lethal violence with early elections and a reduction in presidential powers, but Russia declined to endorse the accord, and many protesters said nothing short of the president’s resignation would get them off the street.... The deal reached Friday instead leaves Mr.Yanukovych in power until for at least the end of the year. It calls for early presidential elections in December, a swift return to a constitution of 2004 that sharply limited the president’s powers and the establishment within 10 days of a “government of national trust.”

You can follow the events at the live feeds below.

The truce announced yesterday didn't last long.  CNN reports:

A shaky truce crumbled in Kiev Thursday morning, when gunfire erupted at the city's Maidan, or Independence Square, which has been ground zero for anti-government protesters. At least 20 protesters died, said Oleg Musiy, head of the protesters' medical service. A police officer also was killed, the interior ministry said. It's unclear what prompted the gunfire. But CNN crews at the scene reported that as security forces were moving away from the area, a group of protesters pursued them, throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails. "Protesters broke the truce," said a statement from President Viktor Yanukovych's office."The opposition used the negotiation period to buy time, to mobilize and get weapons to protesters." When the bullets flew, several demonstrators fell to the ground.

Live feeds and other video footage show clashes between protesters and police forces and footage of the scenes on the ground.