Strategic Trust-Building

Daily Ukraine Crisis Updates – June 17, 2014

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Internal Security News

(RIA Novosti) A journalist from the Russian state-run VGTRK television news station, Igor Kornelyuk, died of injuries suffered during a mortar attack outside the eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk.
An explosion on a gas pipeline in the Poltava region of Ukraine was under investigation, with terrorism considered a priority theory, according to Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukraine's state company Naftogaz Ukrainy tightened security of the country's gas transportation system following an explosion at the Urengoi-Pomary-Uzhgorod trunk pipeline in the Poltava region.
Six people died in clashes in Kramatorsk on June 16, the Donetsk regional administration press office said in a statement.
The Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council's Volodymyr Chepovy claimed an epidemiological situation in Sloviansk and water supply problems in a number of populated localities in the Donetsk region.
Fighters of the Ukrainian National Guard arrived at the state border in the Donetsk region.
Ukraine considers the Geneva accords the basic instrument for de-escalating the situation in the country's east, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said.

Diplomacy News

(ITAR-TASS) Relations between Russia and Ukraine have entered a new stage and are “on a way to serious conflict”, said State Duma's Foreign Affairs Committee head Alexei Pushkov.
(ITAR-TASS) The world is on the verge of open confrontation, Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) Secretary-General Nikolai Bordyuzha said.
(ITAR-TASS) Ukraine’s parliament recommended that the government unilaterally demarcate the border with Russia and close checkpoints on the Ukrainian-Russian border.
(RIA Novosti) Russia will not recognize Kyiv’s decision on the unilateral demarcation of the border, which would lead to ongoing border disputes, Russian lawmaker Alexei Pushkov said.
(Interfax Ukraine) White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Josh Earnest urged Western states to use the gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine to support Kyiv.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukraine's First Deputy Prime Minister Vitaliy Yarema announced that Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko imposed a ban on military-technological cooperation with Russia at a meeting of the country's National Security and Defense Council
(Interfax Ukraine) The Ukrainian Foreign Minsitry called for Western countries to apply a third package of sanctions against Russia.
Ukraine’s National Security Council chief said that Russia has amassed as many as 38,000 soldiers on its borders with Ukraine and continues to supply arms and personnel to rebel forces in the eastern part of the country.
(RIA Novosti) The Russian Foreign Ministry’s Commissioner for Human Rights stated that Russia’s Foreign Ministry is preparing for the release of the second White Book on humanitarian crimes in Ukraine’s east, and is calling on the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the UN to carry out an investigation.
(ITAR-TASS) Russian FM Lavrov said that all members of OSCE must urge Kiev to adopt the roadmap for crisis settlement.
(Interfax Ukraine) German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier expressed fears of a possible split in the EU because of the situation in Ukraine.
The foreign ministers of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Germany supported the peace plan of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko at a meeting held in Tallinn.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon condemned the downing of the Ukrainian Il-76 plane in Luhansk, which killed all 49 people aboard.
(RIA Novosti) Japan intends to continue promoting the development of economic and political stability in Ukraine, Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said.
The European Union said on Tuesday that Russian gas flows to Europe via Ukraine were stable, refusing to speculate how Brussels would react if Russia started accusing Ukraine of siphoning the gas intended for Europe in a repetition of the previous gas crises.

Governance

(ITAR-TASS) The Verkhovna Rada recommended that President Poroshenko introduce martial law in Donetsk and Luhansk regions and replace the chiefs of all law enforcement agencies and the Foreign Ministry.
(Interfax Ukraine) The National Security and Defense Council is considering an issue of imposing martial law in Luhansk and Donetsk regions, NSDC Secretary Andriy Parubiy said.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk said that the Cabinet of Ministers will consider a bill on introducing a state of emergency in the power industry.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko appointed UDAR party MP Iryna Heraschenko to the recently established post of presidential envoy for the peaceful settlement of the conflict in the country's Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko held a meeting with the founder of Open Society Foundations George Soros, at which Soros informed the head of state about the initiative of the strategic plan of reforms for Ukraine.

International Observation Missions

The Verkhovna Rada urged the UN, OSCE, Council of Europe, and European Parliament to intervene in the situation with non-observance of rights of Ukrainians in Russia, noting the harassment and non-observance of the rights of Ukrainians in Russia.

Daily Ukraine Crisis Updates – June 16, 2014

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Internal Security News

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko called for a truce in east Ukraine, where his government faces a rebellion by pro-Russian separatists, to provide time to seek agreement on a peace plan.
Pro-Russian separatists shot down a Ukrainian military plane in Luhansk on June 14, killing all 49 aboard.
Riots took place outside the Russian embassy in Kyiv on June 14 in response to the loss of the plane. Protestors overturned cars, threw eggs, swore at Russian diplomats, and tore down the Russian flag.
(ITAR-TASS) In Odessa about a hundred people, including some bearing symbols of the radical "Right Sector" group, staged a demonstration outside the Russian consulate demanding that the consulate remove the Russian flag.
(ITAR-TASS) Ukrainian troops fired on an artillery center in Kramatorsk in the Donetsk region.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council Secretary Andriy Parubiy said it is now too early to speak about a date when the operation in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions will end. "I can only say that [Poroshenko] has ordered a prompt solution of these tasks," he told a briefing in Kyiv on Monday.
(ITAR-TASS) The spokeswoman of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that the number of internally displaced persons in Ukraine is approaching 20 thousand.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko declared Sunday, June 15 a day of mourning in connection with the deaths of Ukrainian military men and border guards involved in the anti-terrorist operation.

Diplomacy News

(RIA Novosti) Russian gas giant Gazprom at 10:00 a.m. local time implemented a prepayment plan for the delivery of Russian fuel to Ukraine’s Naftogaz.
(ITAR-TASS) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that he no longer intends to communicate with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrey Deschytsia, following offensive remarks made by Deschytsia outside the Russian embassy in Kyiv during the riots on June 14.
NATO released images it claims prove that the tanks that entered Ukraine were of Russian origin.
(RIA Novosti) Russian media reported that the Ukrainian Interior Ministry alleged that there may have been Russian involvement in protests outside the Russian embassy in Kyiv.
(RIA Novosti) China condemned the June 14 attack on the Russian Embassy in Kyiv.
(Interfax Ukraine) The European Council announced that the European Union will sign the economic part of the Association Agreement with Ukraine on June 27, simultaneously with the signing of similar documents with Moldova and Georgia.
(RIA Novosti) A representative of the Russian Federal Security Services alleged that unexploded land mines of Ukraine's armed forces have been found on the territory of Russia's Rostov region one kilometer away from the Ukraine-Russia border.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian PM Yatsenyuk alleged that Russia had banned imports of Ukrainian agricultural products to Russia from June 16.
The CEO of Gazprom alleged that Ukrainian PM Yatsenyuk, having interfered in talks between Russia, Ukraine and the European Commission over the weekend, is inclined toward a gas war.
(RIA Novosti) Gazprom’s CEO alleged that Ukraine said that if Russia refused to grant Ukraine a 'super-low' gas price, it would tap Russia’s Europe-bound gas for free.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrey Deschytsia was embroiled in a diplomatic row after he was caught on camera making abusive remarks about Russian President Vladimir Putin outside the Russian embassy in Kyiv on June 14.
(RIA Novosti) Deshchytsia behaved inadequately when he shouted offensive remarks directed against the Russian president near the Russian embassy, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated that Deschytsia’s crude remark went “beyond the limits of decency.”
(Interfax Ukraine) The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry stated that Ukraine wants Russia to stop its ‘propaganda campaign’ about the situation in eastern Ukraine and publicly call on members of illegal armed groups to lay down their arms.
Russian FM Lavrov "expressed outrage over the inaction of the Kyiv authorities who allowed the rioting outside the Russian embassy" during a phone conversation with his French counterpart, Laurent Fabius.
(RIA Novosti) Lavrov stated that the international community must ask Kyiv to ensure security for diplomats and embassies.
The governments of the UK, Canada, the US, and other nations condemned the June 14 attack on a Ukrainian military plane in Luhansk.

Governance

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko called for early local elections to be held in Donetsk and Luhansk after changes are made to the Constitution and the hostilities end there.
Ukraine’s Land Agency planned to give out land parcels for free to the servicemen of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and other military formations, as well as to the employees of Interior Ministry and the Security Service of Ukraine that are defending territorial integrity and sovereignty of the country in eastern and southeastern regions of Ukraine.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed a decree approving the membership of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC).
(Interfax Ukraine) The chief of the main operational command of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces was not dismissed but was suspended from office, as were a number of other servicemen, pending an investigation into the tragedy of the downed Il-76 plane in Luhansk.

Constitutional Reform

(Interfax Ukraine) Verkhovna Rada Chairman Turchynov stated that Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko will offer the parliament a bill of amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine on the decentralization of power the week of June 16.

Firestein Speaks on U.S.-Iran Relations at Michigan State University

David Firestein, EWI's Perot fellow and vice president for the Strategic Trust-Building Initiative and Track 2 Diplomacy, delivered a talk on "U.S.-Iran Relations: Challenges, Opportunities and Prospects" at Michigan State University on April 7, 2014.

In his talk, Firestein addressed shifting dynamics in U.S.-Iran relations and the effect of recent developments such as the election of Hassan Rouhani to Iran's presidency and the ongoing nuclear negotiations. He also set forth a number of proposals for improving U.S.-Iran relations and easing longstanding tensions between the two countries. Firestein's talk was co-sponsored by the Muslim Studies Program, the Asian Studies Center and the Center for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies, all at Michigan State University.

Listen to Firestein's presentation here. Read the transcript here.

Read more about Firestein Speaks on U.S.-Iran Relations at Michigan State University

Daily Ukraine Crisis Updates – June 13, 2014

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Internal Security News

Ukrainian forces reclaimed the port city of Mariupol after heavy fighting with pro-Russian separatists. The government said there had been many casualties after an operation to expel separatists in the city began at dawn.
40 members of illegal armed groups were killed in a fight on June 12 near the town of Stepanivka in the Donetsk region.
(Interfax Ukraine) An Interior Ministry advisor stated that a corridor for the removal of civilians from the counter-terrorist operation zone will probably be set up on the road to the town of Krasny Lyman (Donetsk region).
(ITAR-TASS) About two dozen people tried to break into the building of Kyiv prosecutor's office, demanding to dismiss the Prosecutor Nicholas Gerasimyuk and conduct personnel changes in the department.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov blamed "militia" for the ceasefire talks' failure.
(Interfax Ukraine) Avakov stated that eleven members of illegal armed groups have been detained in the active phase of the anti-terrorist operation in Mariupol.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko ordered Donetsk regional state administration head Serhiy Taruta to temporarily move the administration's office to Mariupol.
The Mejlis (parliament) of the Crimean Tatar People said it is concerned over cases of kidnapping and disappearances of people in Crimea, as well as Crimean authorities' lack of response to such cases.
One person was killed and another two injured after a shell struck a vegetable warehouse in the Dobropillia district of Donetsk region.
(Interfax Ukraine) A statement on the website of the regional administration of Donetsk said “The city is living a normal life: municipal transport is operating, preparations for the upcoming heating season are in full swing, enterprises are functioning in the regular regime, preschool institutions are open and school summer camps are at work. Traffic police and patrols stay alert."

International Observation Missions News

(Interfax Ukraine) No group of members of illegal armed formations had claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of observers of the OSCE's special monitoring mission in Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
The OSCE sent special envoy Heidi Tagliavini to Ukraine to help to settle the situation on the east of the country.
(ITAR-TASS) UN Secretary General Farhan Haq said that UN observers in Ukraine will check on reports on the use of incendiary bombs and other prohibited ammunition in the country’s east.

Diplomacy News

(RIA Novosti) The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry announced that Russian FM Lavrov and Ukrainian FM Deschytsia had a telephone conversation during which they discussed the 16 Ukrainian children who were allegedly taken to Russia’s Rostov region.
(Interfax Ukraine) The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry stated that reports of the illegal transportation of 16 orphans from the Donetsk town of Snizhne to Russia have been confirmed and added that Russia has violated a number of agreements by passing them through its border without proper permits.
The EU and US urged Russia to stop arming Ukraine rebels after Ukraine said Russian tanks and artillery crossed the border on June 12.
Russian Permanent Representative to the OSCE Andrei Kelin said that the immediate halt of the army operation in Ukraine is the key to the alleviation of tensions.
Ukraine's state gas company said Kyiv was ready to pay a compromise price of $326 per 1,000 cubic meters of Russian natural gas for an interim 18-month period to allow time to end a pricing dispute with Moscow.
(ITAR-TASS) The Spanish Foreign Ministry announced that Spain will send four fighter jets to Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania in response to the crisis in Ukraine. The decision was made during negotiations between the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Spain and NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.
(ITAR-TASS) Ukraine announced that President Poroshenko will make his first official visit to Brussels on June 27 to sign the Association Agreement.
(Interfax Ukraine) The Board Chairman of Naftogaz said that Ukraine is ready to pay $ 1.9 billion to Russia for gas consumed if an agreement on the interim price of $ 326 per 1,000 cubic meters is reached.

Governance

Dnipropetrovsk regional state administration deputy head Hennadiy Korban presented to the Ukrainian presidential administration an engineering project and a feasibility study of a 1,920-kilometers-long wall along the Russian border with an approximate value of euro 100 million.
A working group to speed up judicial system reform in Ukraine was created according to the decree of president of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko.

Constitutional Reform

The European Commission made a first disbursement of EUR 250 million to Ukraine to support institutions and reforms in the country. This payment is part of the "State Building Contract" program signed on May 13 after a joint meeting between the European Commission and the Ukrainian government in Brussels.

7th U.S.-China High-Level Political Party Leaders Dialogue

HLSD (P2P7) (FINAL).pdf

7th U.S.-China High-Level Political Party Leaders Dialogue Event Report

Read more about 7th U.S.-China High-Level Political Party Leaders Dialogue

Daily Ukraine Crisis Updates – June 12, 2014

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Internal Security News

(Interfax Ukraine) Ukraine's Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said that columns with military equipment are coming from the Russian Federation through checkpoints on the eastern border of Ukraine that had been seized by illegal armed groups.
(Reuters) Russia did not immediately respond to Avakov’s accusations that three Russian tanks had been allowed into Ukraine to help the separatists, but Reuters correspondents claimed to have seen three tanks in the border town of Snizhne in east Ukraine.
(RIA Novosti) Pro-Russian former Ukrainian presidential candidate Oleg Tsarev stated that the self-proclaimed ‘People’s Republics’ in Donetsk and Luhansk were working on drafting a joint constitution.
(Interfax Ukraine) Maidan activists began picketing the administration building of the State Border Guard in Kyiv, demanding a meeting with State Border Guard Service Chief Mykola Lytvyn and his resignation. Interior Minister of Ukraine Arsen Avakov said that if the activists don't release the administration building of the State Border Guard Service in Kyiv in the shortest terms, the police will do it with its own forces.
(RIA Novosti) A rebel spokesman told Russia's RIA Novosti news agency that rebels were fighting a force of 40 Ukrainian tanks north of the city of Luhansk.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian President Poroshenko said that he has not ruled out holding a roundtable in Donetsk involving various parties to the conflict, who support his peace plan.
(ITAR-TASS) The leadership of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic claimed that about 15,000 refugees have crossed the border between Ukraine and Russia fleeing from areas of combat operation in Ukraine’s southeastern regions.
(ITAR-TASS) The self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic addressed Russia and another 14 states asking them to recognize its independence.

International Observation Missions News

The secretary-general of the OSCE visited a camp in Russia for refugees from the conflict in Ukraine's east and called for the fighting to stop.

Diplomacy News

(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov announced that three Russian tanks entered Ukraine and were engaged in fighting with Ukrainian troops near the town of Snizhne. Avakov was quoted as saying “Tonight, three T-72 tanks crossed Ukraine's state border from Russia. One tank is in the town of Snizhne. Two other tanks moved out of the town. In the vicinity of Snizhne these tanks were intercepted by Ukrainian troops. The fight is ongoing. There are reports that a Russian T-72 was hit."
Ukrainian Foreign Minster Andrey Deschytsia said that Ukraine is waiting from Russia to take steps to de-escalate the situation in Donbas, otherwise, it will ask the international community to apply the next wave of sanctions.
(Interfax Ukraine) The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said it was not currently preparing a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.
Russian Permanent Representative at the UN Security Council Vitaliy Churkin was instructed to submit another draft resolution on Ukraine to the UN Security Council.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrey Deschytsia said that Ukraine is waiting for Russia's response to the proposals worked out by a trilateral contact group on settling the situation in Donbas, but so far it has received none.
(Interfax Ukraine) Deschytsia said that the European Union may pass a decision about the transition to the second phase of the introduction of a visa-free regime with Ukraine at a meeting of the EU Council on June 23.
(RIA Novosti) Russian Human Rights Ombudsman Ella Pamfilova stated that Russian human rights activists should boost partnership with their Western colleagues, hold constructive conversations with them, but not pander or conform to them.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko briefed US Vice President Joseph Biden about the progress made by the trilateral contact group for implementing Ukrainian president's peace plan for eastern Ukraine. Biden expressed support for the peace plan.
EU Ambassador to Ukraine Jan Tombinski said that Ukraine could switch to a visa-free regime with the EU by the end of this year.
Russian presidential chief of staff stated that Russia demands that Ukraine open humanitarian corridors in the southeastern part of the country.
(RIA Novosti) Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said that Russia will not introduce advance gas payments for Ukraine and review its gas debt downwards if Kiev pays off $2 billion of its gas debt by June 16 and clears arrears in full by June 26.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he was perplexed by the European Commission's proposal on holding top-level negotiations between Russia and Ukraine on gas supply.
(RIA Novosti) The CEO of Russia’s Gazprom said that Gazprom will not postpone transferring Ukraine to prepayment anymore, and expects funds by 10 a.m. on June 16.
Lavrov said that Russia and Ukraine are maintaining political contacts at different levels and in different formats.
(RIA Novosti) Russia deployed a number of troops in the military exercise in Kaliningrad Region comparable to the number of NATO drill participants in the Baltic region, Russia’s Ministry of Defense reported.

GOVERNANCE

(Interfax Ukraine) Head of the EU Delegation to Ukraine Jan Tombinski said the economic part of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement will be signed on June 27, but nothing prevents the Ukrainian government from launching economic reforms immediately.

(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrey Deschytsia stated that no further amendments will be made to the text of the economic part of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement.

(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko dismissed chairman of the Batkivschyna Moloda all-Ukrainian youth public organization Ivan Krulko as presidential adviser. Krulko was appointed by interim President Turchynov.

Daily Ukraine Crisis Updates – June 11, 2014

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Internal Security News

(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Koval said that the question of imposing martial law in the eastern regions of Ukraine is currently not on the agenda.
(ITAR-TASS) The leadership of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic does not plan to discuss with Kyiv the establishment of a humanitarian corridor without mediators.
(ITAR-TASS) Fighting between separatist militias and Ukrainian law enforcers continued overnight at the settlement of Nikolayevka in Donetsk.
The bodies of 210 people, including 14 children, have been delivered to morgues in eastern Ukraine over the period of the anti-terrorist operation ongoing there, Ukrainian Health Minister Oleh Musiy said.
(RIA Novosti) The mayor of Donetsk stated that the possible introduction of an emergency situation in eastern Ukraine will aggravate the already tense situation in the region. He also called on Ukrainian authorities to urgently start negotiations in the country's east regarding a peaceful solution to the crisis in the Donbas region, involving Russia and international organizations.
Eight officers from the Ukrainian Interior Ministry and six border guards who were held captive were released in the town of Horlivka.

International Observation Missions News

(Interfax Ukraine) A group of observers of the OSCE special monitoring mission stopped monitoring Luhansk due to the security situation in the city.
(RIA Novosti) Russian, Ukrainian, and OSCE representatives were holding consultations to develop a further plan of action to regulate the situation in the east of Ukraine and on formatting possible negotiations on the issue.
The head of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe called for the immediate release of eight OSCE monitors who went missing amid the turmoil in eastern Ukraine around two weeks ago.
(ITAR-TASS) The OSCE Secretary General planned to visit a camp of refugees from Ukraine in Russia’s Rostov region, according to Russian FM Lavrov.

Diplomacy News

(Interfax Ukraine) The State Border Service of Ukraine reported that Russia, despite Ukraine's decision to close a number of checkpoints in Luhansk and Donetsk regions, continues the operation of its border checkpoints in some directions.
(RIA Novosti) An aide to the Ukrainian Interior Minister said that Ukraine plans to close the border with Russia in the east.
(RIA Novosti) The Russian Foreign Ministry announced that the human rights situation in Ukraine is to be discussed at the 26th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, which started on June 10 in Geneva and will continue through June 27.
(RIA Novosti) Russian FM Lavrov stated that Russia is sending humanitarian aid to eastern Ukraine in cooperation with the ‘independence supporters’, as the Kiev authorities are not collaborating with Moscow in that field.
(RIA Novosti) Russia’s State Duma Speaker said that European politicians should acknowledge the negative consequences of their policy on Ukraine.
(Interfax Ukraine) Russian President Putin stated that the gas conditions Russia proposed to Ukraine are same as they were under the Viktor Yanukovych government and the Russian government should develop measures which will freeze the proposed discount for some time.
Russian President Putin accused Ukraine on June 11 of forcing gas talks into a "dead end" by rejecting a price cut offer made amid a row threatening supplies to the rest of Europe.
(RIA Novosti) Ukrainian PM Yatsenyuk announced that Russia’s proposal of a $100 reduction on the price for 1,000 cubic meters of gas does not appeal to Ukraine.
(RIA Novosti) Attempts to replace the roadmap on Ukraine, originally prepared by the OSCE, with new unilateral deals are counterproductive, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.

Governance News

(Interfax Ukraine) The Cabinet of Ministers announced an intention to approve a draft law on amendments to the state budget, increasing its revenues by UAH 575 million using funds saved from the recent presidential elections in the country. PM Yatsenyuk stated that the money saved will be spent on the country’s army.
(RIA Novosti) A group of people from Odessa were planning to file a lawsuit against the Ukrainian authorities whom they blame in the May 2 tragedy where dozens were killed during a fire.

Daily Ukraine Crisis Updates – June 10, 2014

What EWI Stands For

Internal Security News

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko ordered the creation of humanitarian corridors for civilians to flee areas of the east hit by conflict.
(Interfax Ukraine) The head of Kyiv City State Administration announced that the Kyiv territorial defense battalion was on its way to the Donbas area, with 430 private soldiers and 32 officers.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian Armed Forces repelled an attack on the Luhansk airfield.
(ITAR-TASS) Ukrainian forces continued shelling Sloviansk, though initial reports indicated the shelling was less intense than in previous days.
(ITAR-TASS) The self-proclaimed Prime Minister of the ‘Donetsk People’s Republic’ described President Poroshenko’s promises of a cease fire in Ukraine’s eastern regions within a week as ‘air shaking’. “If all the troops are pulled back, these words could be turned into reality.”
(Interfax Ukraine) The Donetsk regional administration confirmed the deaths of two children from fragmentation wounds in Sloviansk.
(ITAR-TASS) The ‘people’s mayor’ of the east Ukrainian city of Sloviansk was reportedly dismissed from his post and arrested.

Diplomacy News

(Interfax Ukraine) Russian FM Sergei Lavrov stated that Russia will not introduce sanctions against Ukraine if Kyiv signs an association agreement with the European Union. "We are not obsessed with 'the sanction itch' typical of some of our partners.”
(RIA Novosti) Polish FM Sikorski said that the possibility of Ukraine’s membership in NATO is currently not on the agenda.
(RIA Novosti) Russian FM Lavrov stated that Russia and its partners are convinced that dialogue and cessation of violence are vital for
reconciliation in Ukraine regardless of how the sides interpret the Ukrainian crisis. He also said that Kyiv must stop its military operation in eastern Ukraine and start direct dialogue with independence supporters, otherwise the crisis in the country will continue for a long time.
Ukrainian President Poroshenko confirmed Ukraine's readiness to sign the full text of the Association Agreement with the EU as soon as possible.
(Interfax Ukraine) US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland said that the United States is not planning to place missile defense systems in Ukraine and Georgia.
(Interfax Ukraine) Another round of Russian-Ukrainian gas talks involving a representative of the EU, which was held in Brussels, again ended without a final agreement.
(ITAR-TASS) Alexei Pushkov, the head of the Russian State Duma Committee for International Affairs, called for imposing possible sanctions targeted against individuals and Ukraine as a state for violation of the rights of Russian journalists working in Ukraine.

Governance News

(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko appointed the founder of Ukrainian Media Holding (UMH), Borys Lozhkin, head of the presidential administration. Poroshenko also appointed Hennadiy Zubko as first deputy head of the presidential administration, Oleh Rafalsky as deputy head of the presidential administration, and diplomat Yuriy Onischenko as presidential first aide. Channel 5 journalist Sviatoslav Tseholko was named as his press secretary.

Daily Ukraine Crisis Updates – June 9, 2014

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Internal Security News

The battle for control of the eastern Ukrainian town of Sloviansk and its suburbs intensified on June 8-9, with civilians caught in heavy crossfire between government forces and pro-Russian separatists.
The Defense Minister of Ukraine said that the armed conflict had started to abate in the eastern regions of Ukraine.
(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said that the fighting in eastern Ukraine must be stopped this coming week.
The administration of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic said it does not trust the statements made by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko that military action in southeastern Ukraine should be halted this week.
(Interfax Ukraine) The head of the Donetsk Regional Administration stated that more than 200 people, who are citizens of various countries, are currently held by unlawful armed groups in Donetsk region.
(Interfax Ukraine) The governor of Donetsk said that Poroshenko is unlikely to visit Donbas any time soon because it would be "difficult" to guarantee him security there.
Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov stated that one hundred percent of the combat and patrol units of the Ukrainian Interior Ministry will be involved in the operation in eastern Ukraine.
(ITAR-TASS) The ‘Luhansk People’s Republic’ declared that Luhansk’s international airport was to suspend all regular passenger and chartered flights due to “the intensified activities of the Ukrainian military forces in the Luhansk People’s Republic.”

Diplomacy News

(RIA Novosti) A representative of the self-proclaimed ‘Donetsk People’s Republic’ told RIA Novosti that the international community should tackle the issue of prisoners detained in Ukraine during clashes between independence supporters and the Ukrainian army, and Russia should be a mediator.
(RIA Novosti) Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the recent meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko was absolutely confidential.
(Interfax Ukraine) European Council President Herman Van Rompuy stated that "The European Union will be at Ukraine's side and remains ready to work with those that share these objectives of democracy, prosperity and stability."
The leadership of the ‘Donetsk People’s Republic’ claimed that separatists had detained a number of foreign mercenaries fighting with Ukrainian troops, including Polish and Czech fighters. The Polish government denied these claims.
(RIA Novosti) Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said that he had discussed the situation of Ukrainian refugees with President Vladimir Putin.
(Interfax Ukraine) The European Commission confirmed that a fresh round of talks on energy security, initiated by the European Commission, between European Energy Commissioner Gunther Oettinger, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak and Ukrainian Energy Minister Yuriy Prodan, will be held in Brussels on June 9.
(Interfax Ukraine) NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said he is confident that Petro Poroshenko's assuming the post of the new president of Ukraine will facilitate the speedy settlement of the Ukrainian crisis.
(RIA Novosti) The regional government of Russia’s Rostov region claimed that more than 7,300 Ukrainian citizens have fled to Rostov on June 8-9.
(ITAR-TASS) Russian reporters who were held by Ukrainian security forces alleged that they were kept in “intolerable conditions.” Russian media reported that the journalists were detained by “Right Sector or by foreign mercenaries.”
(ITAR-TASS) A survey conducted by Russia Public Opinion Research Center WCIOM concluded that over 40% Russians say Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko represents the interests of the US, EU and Ukraine’s big businesses.

Constitutional Reform News

(Interfax Ukraine) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said in his inaugural address that Ukraine has been and will remain a unitary state. "Dreams about federalization have no grounds in Ukraine."

International Observation Missions News

(ITAR-TASS) Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrei Deshchitsa sent a letter to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon asking to extend the mandate of the human rights monitoring mission for another three months.
(RIA Novosti) Swiss politician Heidi Tagliavini was appointed as the OSCE’s new envoy to Ukraine by OSCE Chairman and Swiss President Didier Burkhalter at the request of the new Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. Russia’s Foreign Ministry stated that Tagliavini should actively engage in reconciliation efforts and promote dialogue.
A leader of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic stated that OSCE monitors taken prisoner by armed groups in Donetsk region have been moved to Severodonetsk in the neighboring region of Luhansk.

Governance News

Petro Poroshenko was sworn in as President of Ukraine on June 7.
(Interfax Ukraine) During his inaugural address, Poroshenko stated that "There can't be any compromise with anyone regarding Crimea, the European choice, and the governance system.”
(Interfax Ukraine) Poroshenko stated that Ukraine should sign an association agreement with the European Union as soon as possible. “My pen is in my hands,” he said.
(Interfax Ukraine) The day before Poroshenko’s inauguration, interim president Turchynov repealed 82 presidential decrees signed by former Ukrainian presidents and put into effect a National Security and Defense Council resolution on repealing 59 of its previous resolutions.
The First Vice Premier of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic stated that he does not see chances for a direct dialogue with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.

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