| Series Title | EurActiv |
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| Series Details | 01.04.14 |
| Publication Date | 01/04/2014 |
| Content Type | News |
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Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev flaunted Russia's grip on Crimea by flying to the region and holding a government meeting there on the 31 March 2014, angering Ukraine and defying Western demands to hand the peninsula back to Kyiv. German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble declared Vladimir Putin's methods annexing Crimea hearkened back to those of Adolf Hitler. In the meantime, Russian energy giant Gazprom said it was raising the price of gas exports to Ukraine by more than a third, further increasing the pressure on Ukraine. The US and EU pledged to assist Ukraine in reducing its reliance on Moscow for energy supplies. On the same day, a partial withdrawal of troops from the build up on the border with Ukraine was ordered by President Vladimir Putin according to the Russian leader. For its side, the parliament of Ukraine passed a law ordering armed groups in the country to give up their arms. Bulgaria's nationalist Ataka (Attack) party stated on the 1 April 2014 it would work to topple the government if Sofia backed a new round of Western sanctions against Russia over its annexation of Crimea. The party holds the balance of power in the Bulgarian parliament. NASA announced on the 2 April 2014 that it was severing ties with Russia over the Ukraine crisis, except for the International Space Station. Ukraine's deposed President Viktor Yanukovych said on the 2 April 2014 that Russia's annexation of Crimea was "a tragedy" and that he hoped it would become part of Ukraine again. On the 3 April 2014, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told West to calm down and accept Crimea's annexation by Russia. An inquiry on the death of Oleksandr Muzychko (or Sashko Bily), a Ukrainian far-right leader, concluded that he accidentally shot and killed himself during a shoot-out with police in March 2014. |
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| Source Link | http://www.euractiv.com/sections/europes-east/russias-medvedev-angers-ukraine-crimea-visit-301268 |
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| Countries / Regions | Russia, Ukraine |
