Anti-Terrorist Operation: Liveblog (July 5)

March 11 – Russia continues to arm and train separatists in eastern Ukraine, said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (reports Reuters), while answering questions about the information on Russian tanks arriving in Ukraine over the last few days.

March 11 – Leonid Kuzmin, the organizer of events commemorating the birthday of Taras Shevchenko in Simferopol on March 9, has been threatened with being fired if he doesn't resign "voluntarily". For those of you who are English-speaking and French-speaking – it's like firing someone for being Shakespeare's admirer.

March 11 – Security Service of Ukraine has said that Russian Major General Alexei Zavizion (aka Alagir) is the head of operations of the militants in Donbas. Although there are no Russian troops in Donbas, according to Putin.

March 11 – The US has introduced new sanctions against former Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov, his Deputy Serhiy Arbuzov, former minister Raisa Bogatyryova, some pro-Russian militants and their Russian supporters, – according to the website of the US Treasury.

March 11 – The threat to Russian oil industry as a result of sanctions and their implications for companies to attract funds are more serious than the risks associated with falling oil prices, – states the review by international rating agency Fitch Ratings "Russian Oil and Gas Under Sanctions: Technology, Funding More of a Threat Than Weak Oil".

March 11 – The US has decided to supply Ukraine with remotely piloted aircraft and armoured military vehicles Humvee, – informed US Vice President Joe Biden in his telephone conversation with President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko.

March 11 – Russian soldiers are participating in the war in Eastern Ukraine beginning with July 14, 2014.

This is stated in the report of the British Kingdom United Institute of Defense Research (https://www.rusi.org/)

According to the document, on that day six reconnaissance detachments, namely: 2nd Brigade of special forces, 10th Brigade of special forces, a group of the 45th Division of Guards special forces of the air assault troops, 173rd Separate Division of Guards Reconnaissance Company, the Reconnaissance Battalion of the 9th Infantry Brigade, the Reconnaissance Battalion of the 18th Infantry Brigade.

Since August 11th, according to the data of the Institute, in the war in Ukraine, there were already ten tactical groups which were fully involved: 17th Infantry Brigade; 18th Infantry Brigade; 21st Infantry Brigade; 33rd a (mountain) Infantry Brigade; 247th Guard Division Landing-Storming Regiment; 104th Guard Division Landing-Storming Regiment; 331st Guard Division of the air assault troops; 137th Guard Division of the air assault troops; 31st Guard Division Landing-Storming Regiment; 2nd Brigade of special forces.

The number of pro-Russian fighters, state the analysts, numbers a half of the number of resource of Russian regular army. The main strategic task of the Russian Army units in the the document is named the support of the self-pronounced "republics" in Eastern Ukraine. Also the researchers supposse that that Russia very soon will undertake a new a new attack on Ukrainian positions. The most probable direction is considered Mariupol.

Anders Aslund: What Putin Can Learn from Stalin's Winter War

Leonid Bershidsky: Russia is hacking your social media news feed

Edward Lucas: Answering the critics of a tough Russia policy

Human Rights Abuses in Russia Occupied Crimea [23 pgs]

by Andrii Klymenko, Atlantic Council (Washington, D.C.), Freedom House (Washington, D.C.)

March 2015

Putin and politics of isolation

Russia-Ukraine (in caricatures-photogallery)

P.S.: Please spread this appeal as much as possible.

Maidan Community Sector, Lviv: Dear friends!

George Soros

A New Policy to Rescue Ukraine

January 9 – Four Ukrainian military were killed, eight wounded in the last 24 hours, – informed NSDC spokesman Andriy Lysenko. He believes that this is due to arrival of new Russian "humanitarian aid convoy" – weapons, ammunition and terrorists have again arrived from Russia.

January 9 – Russia hasn't provided any positive signs about the conflict in Ukraine, thus there are no reasons to lift EU sanctions, – stated Foreign Minister of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius on Friday ("Interfax-Ukraine"). He made this statement a day after EU Foreign Minister Federica Mogherini said that she can see "limited positive signs on behalf of Russia". Lithuanian Minister has stressed that Russia continues to support armed groups in eastern Ukraine and sends humanitarian convoys, which are not permitted to be inspected by the representatives of Ukraine or the Red Cross.

January 9 – Russia became fifth on the list of countries with a high probability of default, ahead of several countries with speculative rating, including Lebanon, Egypt, Portugal.

January 9 – Lithuania, United Kingdom, Denmark and Estonia have addressed the European Commission regarding an action plan against Russian propaganda campaign (as stated in a letter by foreign ministers of the four countries, addressed to Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, – reports Delfi.lt). The letter was signed by foreign ministers of Lithuania, the United Kingdom, of Denmark and Estonia Linas Linkevičius, Philip Hammond, Martin Lidegaard and Keit Pentus-Rosimannus. They also warned that "Russia is rapidly expanding its campaign of misinformation and propaganda" in support "of political and military goals of the Russian government".

January 9 – Ukrainian officer Nadiya Savchenko has been on a hunger strike for 28 days and has lost 10 kilograms. Her attorney Mark Feigin wrote this on his Twitter. Savchenko was transfered to a solitary cell: "She was put in a solitary cell due to her hunger strike," he said. Savchenko is on a hunger strike since December 13th. In Russia she is accused of beinginvolved in the death of Russian journalists. She denies any of these accusations; her defense claims that Savchenko was kidnapped by Russian terrorists and was forcibly taken beyond the territory of Ukraine. In September Savchenko was already held in a solitary cell. At present she is a deputy of Parliament from "Batkivshchyna" Party and a delegate in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.

Putin's Way

FRONTLINE investigates the accusations of criminality and corruption that have surrounded Vladimir Putin's reign in Russia

Andrew Katz, Jerome Sessini, Kira Pollack

Beneath the Front Lines of the War in Eastern Ukraine

A brutal ground war is tearing apart the region's coal-mining community as the long winter settles in

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