Russia demands surrender of Ukraine's Crimea forces

[DrLeftover]

3 March 2014

Russia's military has given Ukrainian forces in Crimea until dawn on Tuesday to surrender or face an assault, Ukrainian defence sources have said.

The head of Russia's Black Sea Fleet Aleksander Vitko set the deadline and also threatened two warships, Ukrainian officials said.

However, Interfax news agency later quoted a fleet spokesman who denied that any ultimatum had been issued.

Moscow has said its troops are needed in Crimea to protect civilians.

The Kremlin says people in Crimea have come under threat from "ultra-nationalists" since pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych was ousted last month.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26424738



I'm sure Mr. Obama will issue another terse statement. That'll show'em.

 

[DrLeftover]

Russia has said China is largely "in agreement" over Ukraine, after other world powers condemned Moscow for sending troops into the country.

Hundreds of Russian soldiers have surrounded a military base in Crimea, preventing Ukrainian soldiers from going in or out.

http://news.sky.com/story/1219922/russia-and-china-in-agreement-over-ukraine

 

[DrLeftover]

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia said it had successfully test-fired an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) on Tuesday, with tensions running high over its military intervention in Ukraine's Crimea region.

A U.S. official said the United States had received proper notification from Russia ahead of the test and that the initial notification pre-dated the crisis in Crimea. The Russian Defence Ministry could not be reached for comment.

The Strategic Rocket Forces launched an RS-12M Topol missile from the southerly Astrakhan region and the dummy warhead hit its target at a proving ground in Kazakhstan, Defence Ministry spokesman Igor Yegorov told state-run news agency RIA.

The launch site, Kapustin Yar, is near the Volga River about 450 km (280 miles) east of the Ukrainian border. Kazakhstan, a Russian ally in a post-Soviet security grouping, is further to the east.

Russia conducts test launches of its ICBMs fairly frequently and often announces the results, a practice seen as intended to remind the West of Moscow's nuclear might and reassure Russians that President Vladimir Putin will protect them.

Russia and the United States signed the latest of a series of treaties restricting the numbers of ICBMs in 2010, but Moscow has indicated it will agree further cuts in the near future and is taking steps to upgrade its nuclear arsenal.

Putin has emphasised that Russia must maintain a strong nuclear deterrent, in part because of an anti-missile shield the United States is building in Europe which Moscow says could undermine its security.

The Defence Ministry said the test could help Russia improve its capability of foiling anti-missile shields, RIA reported.

Moscow says it is concerned U.S. interceptors could shoot down some of its ICBMs in flight, weakening its arsenal. The United States says the shield is meant to protect against threats from states such as Iran and poses no threat to Russia.

The 20-metre (60-foot) long RS-12M, known in NATO parlance as the SS-25 Sickle, was first put into service in 1985, six years before the collapse of the Soviet Union, and is designed to carry a nuclear warhead. Its range is 10,500 km (6,000 miles).

http://news.yahoo.com/russia-test-fires-icbm-amid-tension-over-ukraine-193003190--sector.html;_ylt=AwrBJR9IKhZTKSMAfjrQtDMD

 

[WHO IS SERAFIN]

Well Clinton sure did make it easy for Russia to invade again when the Ukraine handed over almost 2000 nukes. And then promising that America would protect them from any invasion.

 

[Evil Eye]

I'm sure Mr. Obama will issue another terse statement. That'll show'em.

Undoubtedly. So, what would you have him do?

The United States says the shield is meant to protect against threats from states such as Iran and poses no threat to Russia.

Uhm... way to call your own defences ineffective.