Ukraine ‘slipping out of control’, warns Germany
30 Aug BBC
The crisis in eastern Ukraine is “slipping out of control” and needs
to be reined in to avoid direct military confrontation between Ukraine
and Russia, Germany has warned.
Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier spoke as the EU is poised to
consider more sanctions on Russia. Russia has denied claims by Nato that
its forces illegally crossed into Ukraine to support separatists
there.Some 2,600 people have died in fighting between rebels and
Ukrainian troops.
The conflict in Ukraine's eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk
erupted in April following Russia's annexation of Ukraine's southern
Crimea peninsula a month before.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has blamed Ukraine for the crisis,
comparing its siege of the rebel-held cities of Donetsk and Luhansk to
the siege of Leningrad by Nazi Germany in World War Two.On Friday, Mr
Steinmeier warned that the “already dangerous situation” in Ukraine had
now entered “a whole new dimension”.Our hopes that direct talks between
[Ukraine and Russia] would contribute to de-escalating the situation
have been disappointed,” he said in Milan.The border infringements have
intensified, and raised concerns that the situation is slipping out of
control.
“This needs to stop, especially if we want to avoid direct military
confrontation between Ukrainian and Russian military forces.
His sentiments were echoed by other foreign ministers:France's
Laurent Fabius spoke of “unacceptable” intervention by Russian troops in
eastern Ukraine Sweden's Carl Bildt said a clear message had to be sent
to Russia: “We have to be aware of what we are facing: we are in the
midst of the second Russian invasion of Ukraine within a year” The
Netherlands’ Frans Timmermans said the presence of Russian soldiers in
eastern Ukraine could not “remain unansweredRussia could face new
restrictions after a summit of the European Union's 28 heads of state in
Brussels on Saturday.
The EU and the US have already imposed sanctions against dozens of
senior Russian officials, separatist commanders and Russian firms
accused of undermining Ukrainian sovereignty.In late July, the EU also
blacklisted some key economic sectors, prompting Russia to retaliate by
banning food imports.
Russia's energy minister has warned that the Ukrainian crisis could
lead to a disruption of gas supplies to European countries this
winter.Earlier on Friday, Nato held an emergency meeting after releasing
satellite images it said showed columns of Russian armed forces inside
Ukrainian territory.Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen called on
Russia to “take immediate and verifiable steps towards de-escalation”.
Mr Rasmussen also indicated Nato could consider Ukraine's application
to join the alliance, shortly after Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk
announced he was putting Ukraine on course for Nato membership.
Meanwhile, heavy fighting has continued near the strategic port of
Mariupol on the Azov Sea. Rebel forces are trying to capture the city
but Ukrainian government troops are digging in.On Thursday the
separatists seized the nearby town of Novoazovsk.
The separatists’ advance toward Mariupol has raised fears that the
Kremlin might seek to create a land corridor between Russia and
Crimea.Rebels are also reported to have surrounded government soldiers
in several places further north, near Donetsk city.A new UN report found
that serious human rights abuses had been committed by rebels and
Ukrainian forces.
The abuses include the deliberate targeting and killing of civilians
trapped in urban areas or trying to flee the fighting via
government-established “safe corridors”, the study found.It said that an
average of around 36 people had been killed on a daily basis between 16
July and 17 August.
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