April 8, 2014 -- Updated 1647 GMT (0047 HKT)
Russia warned Kiev that using force to quell pro-Russian protests could lead to civil war. FULL STORY
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SPECIAL FORCES RETAKE SECURITY HQ
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PRO-RUSSIA RALLIES ESCALATE
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PUTIN 'TOO PRAGMATIC'
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PUTIN 'TOO PRAGMATIC'
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Russia warns that any use of force in Ukraine's eastern region could
lead to civil war -- as Kiev seeks to regain control after pro-Moscow
uprisings.
FULL STORY
- Ukraine warning: Don't invade
- Ukraine to Russia: I'm not your child
- Brawl erupts in parliament
- NEW U.S. Navy heads for Black Sea
- Is Russia done after Crimea?
Russia warns of civil war if Ukraine uses force to quell eastern revolts
April 8, 2014 -- Updated 1947 GMT (0347 HKT)
Pro-Russia rallies escalating in Ukraine
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: There are conflicting reports about hostages being held by protesters
- U.S. Navy warship heads to Black Sea in support of Eastern European allies
- 70 people are arrested in anti-terrorist operation in Kharkiv, Interior Ministry says
- Russia's Foreign Ministry says any use of force in eastern Ukraine "could lead to civil war"
Pro-Russian protesters
seized government buildings in the cities of Donetsk, Luhansk and
Kharkiv on Sunday. Rebels occupying Donetsk's regional government
building Monday declared a "people's republic" and called for a
referendum on secession from Ukraine to be held by May 11.
There were conflicting
reports over whether demonstrators who seized control of a Security
Service of Ukraine building in Luhansk were holding hostages.
A security service
anti-terrorism unit outside the building claimed the demonstrators are
holding 60 people, Victoria Syumar, a security service spokeswoman, and
Yarema Duh, spokesman for the National Security and Defense Council,
told CNN.
But pro-Russian demonstrators holed up in the building denied they have taken anyone hostage, according to Reuters news reports.
The security service also
accused the demonstrators of placing explosive throughout the building,
a claim the protesters denied, Reuters reported.
Russia's Foreign Ministry
said reports that the protesters are facing a crackdown by Ukrainian
authorities are of particular concern.
"We are calling for the
immediate cessation of any military preparations, which could lead to
civil war," it said in a statement on its website.
Pro-Russia rallies escalating in Ukraine
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The ministry alleged that
what it called "American experts from the private military organization
Greystone," disguised as soldiers, as well as militants from the
Ukrainian far-right group Right Sector, had joined Ukrainian forces
preparing for the crackdown in the country's east.
Secretary of State John
Kerry said Tuesday that Russian forces and special agents have been
behind what he called the "chaos" in eastern Ukraine in the past 24
hours. Kerry described the developments as "more than deeply disturbing"
and said they amounted to what could be a "contrived pretext for
military intervention just as we saw in Crimea."
He followed up by
warning of increased sanctions targeting Russia's banking, energy,
mining and arms sectors if the Russians "cross over" into eastern
Ukraine. Current sanctions target individuals over the Crimean
annexation.
Building cleared
Late Monday, special
forces cleared armed protesters from the security service headquarters
in Donetsk, acting President Oleksandr Turchynov's office announced.
But Ukrainian interim
Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Yarema was quoted by Russian state-run news
agency ITAR-Tass as saying Tuesday that authorities are not going to
storm the city's regional administration building. Yarema said the
decision was made after talks with representatives of the protesters in
the building.
According to the deputy
head of the National Security and Defense Council, Victoria Syumar,
negotiations are under way between the protesters and police,
coordinated by influential oligarch Rinat Ahmetov.
Donetsk is the hometown
of ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, whose pro-Russian
government was toppled in a popular revolt in February.
At a news conference in
Kiev, Ukraine's interim presidential chief of staff Serhiy Pashinksiy
said he had "convincing evidence" suggesting the protests were being
financed by Yanukovych and his supporters.
In remarks posted by
Russia's Interfax news agency and confirmed by his press secretary,
Pashinksiy said authorities had frozen "dozens of bank accounts and
seized colossal resources. All of these massive rallies are financed."
This could not immediately be independently verified.
'Anti-terrorist operation'
Police detained about 70
people in Kharkiv in an "anti-terrorist" operation that cleared the
building in Kharkiv, an Interior Ministry spokeswoman said.
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Russian flag raised over Ukrainian city
Special forces police
from outside of the city carried out the operation, in which all those
arrested were armed with knives or batons, spokeswoman Natalia Stativko
said.
Those arrested have been
taken to police detention centers in the cities of Poltava and
Zaporijya and face charges relating to separatism, violence and taking
part in mass protests, she said.
Earlier, in a Facebook
message, Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said the city center had been
closed to the public and urged people to remain calm. No guns were
fired, he said.
Turchynov blamed
"separatist groups coordinated by Russian special services" for the
revolts, which he said echoed events leading to the Russian annexation
of Crimea three weeks ago.
"Enemies of Ukraine are
trying to play out the Crimean scenario, but we will not let this
happen," he said in a televised message.
British Foreign
Secretary William Hague said the protests bore "all the hallmarks of a
Russian strategy to destabilize Ukraine" and warned of "grave economic
and political consequences."
Meanwhile, the U.S. Navy
warship USS Donald Cook is scheduled to enter the Black Sea no later
than Thursday as part of the latest U.S. military effort to demonstrate
support for Eastern European allies concerned about Russia's troop
buildup, two U.S. military officials said.
The ship will conduct
exercises and port visits while in the Black Sea, said the officials,
who spoke on condition of anonymity because a formal announcement has
not been made.
The move comes ahead of
an April 15 meeting among top NATO political representatives, who will
discuss and potentially approve NATO recommendations for additional
military measures, including shortening the response time of NATO forces
in a crisis. Other options include more military exercises with member
nations, including the United States, and potentially providing military
advisers to Ukraine.
Separatism outlawed
Turchynov reiterated
Tuesday he would treat Russian separatists who have seized buildings in
the east of the country as "terrorists" who will be prosecuted with the
full force of the law.
His remarks to
parliament came ahead of a vote in which it approved legislation
outlawing groups and individuals who call for separatism. Of the 450
members of the Ukrainian parliament, 230 voted in favor of the bill. All
members of the Communist Party abstained from voting.
Before the vote, a fight
broke out in parliament when Petr Simonenko, the leader of the
Communist Party, began to say lawmakers should listen to the demands of
eastern Ukraine.
He defended
demonstrators who have seized local government buildings, saying they
are not doing anything different from what the current interim
government has done. He also accused "nationalists" of starting the
crisis in eastern Ukraine.
Simonenko was prevented
from speaking further by a member of the far-right Svoboda party, and
peace was restored in the parliament.
Russia urges talks
Russia, which has tens
of thousands of troops near the Ukrainian border, said Monday that it
was "watching closely" what was unfolding and told Ukraine to stop
blaming it for Ukrainian problems.
President Vladimir
Putin's government pushed Ukraine to set up a federal system in which
regions with ethnic Russian majorities would have more autonomy, and its
Foreign Ministry urged Ukraine to enter into talks over the issue.
"Ukrainian people want
to get a clear answer from Kiev to all their questions. It's time to
listen to these legal claims," a Foreign Ministry statement read. The
Ukrainian government was acting "irresponsibly," it said.
At a news conference
Tuesday, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow has proposed
involving Ukrainian presidential candidates in Russian, U.S. and EU
talks on Ukraine.
He insisted that
representatives of southeast Ukraine take part, too, according to the
Interfax news agency. He said Russia was ready for the talks, which may
take place in 10 days.
Moscow dispatched
thousands of troops to Crimea in support of a pro-Russian movement that
seized power in the semi-autonomous region shortly after Yanukovych fled
to Russia.
The Black Sea peninsula was then subsumed into Russia after a referendum denounced as illegal by Kiev and the West.
Russia has called
Yanukovych's removal a coup and says the interim government in Kiev is
illegitimate. It has said it doesn't intend to invade eastern Ukraine
but reserves the right to protect ethnic Russians there.
CNN's Laura Smith-Spark and Marie-Louise
Gumuchian wrote in London and journalist Victoria Butenko reported from
Kiev. CNN's Chelsea J. Carter, Barbara Starr, Kellie Morgan, Nick Paton
Walsh, Boriana Milanova, Azad Safarov, Lindsay Isaac and Tom Cohen
contributed to this report.
We want out of Ukraine: Donetsk protesters dig in at government building
April 8, 2014 -- Updated 1736 GMT (0136 HKT)
Donetsk separatists remain defiant
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Hundreds of protesters seize a government building in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine
- They declare "People's Republic of Donetsk," call for referendum to secede from Ukraine
- Ukrainian military says it won't retake building yet, but acting President warns of prosecutions
- Ukrainian President Oleksandr Turchynov accuses Russia of stoking eastern Ukraine tensions
Two days after smashing
their way in, hundreds of protesters have transformed this government
building in the industrial city of Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, into the
self-declared "People's Republic of Donetsk."
From the clumsily erected
bulwarks to the lack of a leader or concrete plan, the scenes are
similar to the pro-European rallies in Kiev's Maidan Square in recent
months, with one major difference: Many of these protesters say they
want to join Russia and have called for a referendum on secession from
Ukraine to be held by May 11.
The protesters who let us
into the building are eager to show they are here entirely peacefully,
but it is clear they are prepared for a fight. Doors have been locked
and stairwells blocked at the top of the building to prevent the
Ukrainian military from storming in from above. They've smashed the
pavement outside the building to use as stones. A makeshift hospital and
temporary cafe have been constructed, and locals are keeping the men
and women inside stocked up on food and medical supplies.
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Pro-Russia rallies escalating in Ukraine
What is Russia's endgame in Ukraine?
Some of the protesters
inside the building are happy to see us; others seem ready to attack us
with their bats at a moment's notice. Some are aggressively
anti-American. One of the older men asks us why Americans are sticking
their nose into Ukrainian affairs.
One man tells us that
he's from the Eastern Front, a new local group, and that help is on the
way. He says there are 6,000 members of his group who stand ready to
"protect the fatherland." Others are hopeful that a vote to secede from
Ukraine can be held sooner than protesters announced Monday.
When the power went out
Monday night, many inside believed Ukraine's special forces were coming
to retake the building. But the Ukrainian military is nowhere to be
seen, and the mood of the protesters is growing ever more defiant.
Donetsk is the hometown
of ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, whose pro-Russian
government was toppled in a popular revolt in February.
Nobody knows for sure
what role, if any, Russia is playing in this latest bout of unrest in
Ukraine. Acting Ukrainian President Oleksandr Turchynov blames
"separatist groups coordinated by Russian special services" for the
revolts in eastern Ukraine, which he said echoed events leading to the
Russian annexation of Crimea three weeks ago.
Since then, Russia has
amassed thousands of troops on its border with eastern Ukraine. And
Russia's Foreign Ministry said reports that protesters are facing a
crackdown by Ukrainian authorities are of particular concern.
"We are calling for the
immediate cessation of any military preparations, which could lead to
civil war," it said in a statement on its official website.
Protesters say that
local complaints, not Moscow, are driving anti-government sentiments
here in Donetsk. One man, who calls himself Andre, says that Ukraine's
ongoing political crisis has hit his wages and that he can no longer
afford to feed his family. He tells me that he has simply had enough.
Ukrainian officials say
they won't storm the building for now. But the acting President says
those who have seized buildings will be treated as "terrorists" and
prosecuted with the full force of the law.
In the meantime,
protesters say they will continue to fortify their makeshift fortress in
Donetsk, and their tiny pocket of grievances and whims, despite its
size, seems to now be on the front line of a massive struggle for the
future of Ukraine.
CNN's Nick Thompson and CNN Wires contributed to this report.
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