Deutsche Welle, 1 April 2014
A meeting
of NATO foreign ministers has agreed to halt all cooperation with Russia and to
consider further deployments of troops to eastern Europe. The decision was made
in response to Russia's annexation of Crimea.
NATO head
Anders Fogh Rasmussen said on Tuesday that the alliance would formally end
practical defense and civilian cooperation with Russia.
"We
are suspending all practical cooperation with Russia, military and
civilian," Rasmussen said at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in
Brussels.
"Through
its actions, Russia has undermined the principles on which our partnership is
built, and has breached its own international commitments. So we cannot go on
doing business as usual."
US
Secretary of State John Kerry took a break from peace process discussions in Israel to join the closed-doors summit. Ukraine's foreign minister was invited
to attend part of the proceedings.
NATO
members agreed to examine the possibility of deploying more military assets to eastern Europe, in particular to Poland and the Baltic nations. In a joint
statement, the foreign ministers pledged they would keep providing
"appropriate reinforcement and visible assurance of NATO's commitment to
deterrence and collective defense against any threat of aggression to the
alliance."
The
alliance has already boosted its air policing program over the Baltic region.
As the
two-day meeting began, Rasmussen downplayed reports that Russian troops were
being withdrawn from the border with Ukraine.
The presence
of Russian troops on the border has been condemned by Kerry as
"unhelpful."
Vote to
disarm nationalist groups
Ukraine's
parliament on Tuesday voted to disarm a self-defense group that emerged during
protests against pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych's regime.
The
decision followed a nighttime police raid on a Kyiv hotel that uncovered a
cache of weapons belonging to the nationalist group Pravy Sektor (Right
Sector), which was allegedly involved in the toppling of Yanukovych in
February.
That raid came
after a member of the Pravy Sektor took refuge in the Dnipro Hotel. The man had
allegedly been involved in a shooting incident outside a restaurant that
injured three people, including a top Kyiv city administrator.
rc/jr (AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters)
Related Articles:
US Congress passes Ukraine aid, Russian sanctions bill
Putin called Obama to discuss Ukraine proposal, US says
US Congress passes Ukraine aid, Russian sanctions bill
Putin called Obama to discuss Ukraine proposal, US says
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.