NATO fears Russian troop build-up along border with Ukraine

Series Title
Series Details 23.03.14
Publication Date 23/03/2014
Content Type

Euronews, the BBC and other news sources reported on comments on the 23 March 2014 from NATO's Supreme Allied Commander, General Phillip Breedlove regarding the situation in Ukraine.

He issued a warning over the build-up of Russian forces along the border with Ukraine and said that NATO was worried about the threat to the Trans-Dniester region, which had broken away from Moldova in 1990 and had in 2014 sought closer links with Russia.

In Crimea, pro-Russian elements appeared to be stepping up efforts to secure full military control of the region. It was reported that the Russian flag was now flying over 189 Ukrainian military establishments.

A power failure plunged much of the Crimean capital, Simferopol, into darkness on the 24 March 2014, the second partial blackout in two days, as the Ukrainian government in Kiev appeared to retaliate against Russia’s occupation and annexation of the peninsula by sharply cutting electricity supplied from the mainland.

G7 leaders held talks on the sidelines of a nuclear security summit in The Hague on the 24 March 2014, to consider their response to Russia annexing Crimea, isolating Moscow, which was due to take over the rotating G8 presidency.

The G7 countries adopted a Hague Declaration which stated that they would not participate in the planned G8 Sochi Summit in June 2014. For its part, US ally Australia also indicated Russia might also be excluded from a G20 summit in Brisbane in November 2014, but Brazil, China, India, and South Africa rejected the idea.

The BBC and other sources reported that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Andriy Deshchytsia on the 24 March 2014 for the first time since Russia's move into Crimea triggered the diplomatic crisis.

BBC News also reported on the 24 March 2014 that Russia was expecting investors to move up to $70bn (£42bn) of assets out of the country in the first three months of 2014. Ifo, a German think-tank, claimed that Russia would be hit harder by economic sanctions than the 28-member EU in case of a complete trade embargo by the West over the Crimea conflict. But it didn't advise to impose it.

Source Link Link to Main Source http://www.euronews.com/2014/03/23/nato-fears-russian-troop-build-up-along-border-with-ukraine/
Related Links
BBC News, 23.03.14: Nato warns of Russian army build-up on Ukraine border http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-26704205
ESO: Key Source: Euromaidan - Protests in Ukraine 2013 - 2015 - Key source http://www.europeansources.info/record/euromaidan-protests-in-ukraine-2013-2015/
ESO: Background information: Merkel: ‘G8 no longer exists’ as EU plans further sanctions on Russia / EU countries weigh possible losses from Crimea escalation / Conclusions on Ukraine, 21 March 2014 http://www.europeansources.info/record/merkel-g8-no-longer-exists-as-eu-plans-further-sanctions-on-russia-eu-countries-weigh-possible-losses-from-crimea-escalation-conclusions-on-ukraine-21-march-2014/
ESO: Background information: Moldova's Trans-Dniester region pleads to join Russia http://www.europeansources.info/record/moldovas-trans-dniester-region-pleads-to-join-russia/
NATO: Newsroom: News, 21.03.14: Ukraine crisis is a 'game-changer' for Allies NATO Secretary General tells Brussels Forum http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natolive/news_108225.htm
German Marshall Fund: Brussels Forum http://brussels.gmfus.org/
EUObserver, 24.03.14: Nato general warns about Moldova, Baltics http://euobserver.com/foreign/123588
EUObserver, 22.03.14: Russia to Europe: We can do whatever we want http://euobserver.com/foreign/123577
EurActiv, 24.03.14: NATO warns of Russian threat to Moldova http://www.euractiv.com/sections/europes-east/nato-warns-russian-threat-moldova-301089
RIA Novosti, 23.03.14: Belarus De Facto Acknowledges Crimea as Part of Russia http://en.ria.ru/world/20140323/188685745/Belarus-De-Facto-Acknowledges-Crimea-as-Part-of-Russia.html
RIA Novosti, 23.03.14: Ukrainian Navy Flagship Hoists Russian Flag http://en.ria.ru/russia/20140323/188686299/Ukrainian-Navy-Flagship-Hoists-Russian-Flag.html
EurActiv, 24.03.14: G7 leaders to hold talks on Ukraine, isolate Russia http://www.euractiv.com/sections/global-europe/g7-leaders-hold-talks-ukraine-isolate-russia-301088
The Guardian, 24.03.14: Barack Obama seeks European support for harder line on Russia sanctions http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/mar/24/barack-obama-seeks-european-support-for-harder-line-on-russia-sanctions
BBC News, 24.03.14: Russian troops 'overrun Crimea's Feodosia naval base' http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-26710884
The Guardian, 23.03.14: Russia ready to annex Moldova region, Nato commander claims http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/mar/23/russia-ukraine-annex-moldova-trans-dniester-nato
Deutsche Welle, 23.03.14: German defense chief von der Leyen calls for stronger NATO backing in Ukraine crisis http://dw.de/p/1BUdG
The Guardian, 24.03.14: Nato to bolster defences of Baltic states amid Ukraine crisis http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/mar/24/cameron-nato-baltics-states-defences-ukraine-crisis
BBC News, 24.03.14: Crimea crisis: Russia and Ukraine hold first meeting http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-26725659
G8 Information Centre, 24.03.14: Analytical Studies: Summits: Road to the 2014 Sochi Summit : G7: The Hague Declaration March 24, 2014 http://www.g8.utoronto.ca/summit/2014sochi/hague_140324.html
RIA Novosti, 24.03.14: No Ukrainian Military Units Left in Crimea – Official http://en.ria.ru/russia/20140324/188709616/No-Ukrainian-Military-Units-Left-in-Crimea--Official.html
RIA Novosti, 24.03.14: Ukraine-EU Pact Signals Step Towards NATO – Russian Ministry Source http://en.ria.ru/world/20140324/188714198/Ukraine-EU-Pact-Signals-Step-Towards-NATO--Russian-Ministry.html
EurActiv, 25.03.14: G7 leaders to hold summit in Brussels, instead of Sochi http://www.euractiv.com/sections/global-europe/g7-leaders-hold-summit-brussels-instead-sochi-301116
EUObserver, 25.03.14: Brazil, China, India rally round Russia after G7 snub http://euobserver.com/foreign/123616
Deutsche Welle, 24.03.14: G8 suspended as standoff between world powers and Russia escalates http://dw.de/p/1BVCO
CESIfo, March 2014: A Trade Boycott Would Hit Russia Much Harder Than the EU https://www.cesifo-group.de/ifoHome/presse/Pressemitteilungen/Pressemitteilungen-Archiv/2014/Q1/pm-20140325-handel-russland.html
BBC News, 24.03.14: Russia warns of investor flight http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-26725905
Spiegel Online International, 24.03.14: Dancing with the Bear: Merkel Seeks a Hardline on Putin http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/merkel-and-europe-search-for-an-adequate-response-to-putin-a-960378.html
The New York Times, 24.03.14: Kiev Blamed for Blackout in Capital of Crimea http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/25/world/europe/ukraine-pulls-all-its-forces-out-of-crimea.html
Euro|Topics, 25.03.14: Industrial nations exclude Russia from G8 http://www.eurotopics.net/en/home/presseschau/archiv/archiv_dossier/DOSSIER140691-Industrial-nations-exclude-Russia-from-G8

Countries / Regions , , ,