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Putin Urges Extension of Ukraine Cease-Fire Putin Presses Extension of Cease-Fire in Ukraine
(about 5 hours later)
MOSCOW — President Vladimir V. Putin said on Tuesday that a temporary cease-fire declared by separatists in eastern Ukraine should be extended, just hours after he called on the upper house of Russia’s Parliament to rescind a March resolution authorizing the use of his country’s armed forces in Ukraine. MOSCOW — President Vladimir V. Putin said Tuesday that a temporary cease-fire in Ukraine should be extended, just hours after he called on the upper house of Russia’s Parliament to rescind a March resolution authorizing the use of his country’s armed forces there.
Both moves came as the United States and some European leaders warned that Russia faced a third, stiffer round of economic sanctions, specifically targeting sectors like banking and high technology, if it did not do more to end the Ukraine crisis. European leaders are due to discuss the sanctions during a summit in Brussels on Friday. Both moves came as the United States and some European leaders warned that Russia faced a third, stiffer round of economic sanctions, specifically targeting sectors like banking and high technology, if it did not do more to end the Ukraine crisis. European leaders are set to discuss the sanctions during a summit meeting in Brussels on Friday.
In eastern Ukraine, the unexpected cease-fire announced by pro-Russian separatists on Monday night proved shaky, with a spokesman for the Ukrainian armed forces accusing the rebels of shooting down a military helicopter with nine people aboard. In eastern Ukraine, the cease-fire unexpectedly accepted by pro-Russian separatists on Monday night proved shaky, with a spokesman for the Ukrainian armed forces accusing the rebels of shooting down a military helicopter, killing all nine people aboard.
The Mi-8 helicopter was carrying equipment and specialists to monitor the cease-fire near the rebel-held city of Slovyansk, which has been the epicenter of the conflict, when it was struck by a missile fired from a man-portable air defense system, said Vladislav Seleznyov, the spokesman, in a statement posted online. He said all aboard were believed to have been killed. The Mi-8 helicopter was carrying equipment and specialists to monitor the cease-fire near the rebel-held city of Slovyansk, a hotbed of resistance, when it was struck by a missile fired from a portable air defense system, said Vladislav Seleznyov, the spokesman, in a statement posted online.
The attack on the helicopter took place in the hills in the town of Karachun on the outskirts of Slovyansk, Mr. Seleznyov said. The attack on the helicopter took place in the hills around the town of Karachun on the outskirts of Slovyansk, Mr. Seleznyov said.
The rebel outfit defending Slovyansk, the scene of the heaviest fighting in the two-month conflict, is run by a shadowy military commander named Igor Strelkov who was not present at negotiations on the cease-fire in the eastern city of Donetsk on Monday evening. But an aide to the prime minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic said in an interview that Mr. Strelkov was aware of the temporary truce. The rebel militia in Slovyansk is run by a shadowy military commander named Igor Strelkov, who was not present at negotiations on the cease-fire in the eastern city of Donetsk on Monday evening. But an aide to the prime minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic said in an interview that Mr. Strelkov was aware of the temporary truce.
Maintaining a truce could prove tough. There is minimal trust between the government in Kiev, the capital, and the patchwork of militias and rebellious political organizations that have laid siege to eastern Ukraine.Maintaining a truce could prove tough. There is minimal trust between the government in Kiev, the capital, and the patchwork of militias and rebellious political organizations that have laid siege to eastern Ukraine.
Earlier Tuesday, Mr. Seleznyov said in an interview that rebels had continued using mortars to attack several government checkpoints near Slovyansk. He said there had been isolated fighting near the border between Russia and Ukraine as well, with some injuries. Earlier Tuesday, Mr. Seleznyov said in an interview that rebels had continued using mortars to attack several government checkpoints near Slovyansk. He said there had been isolated fighting near the border between Russia and Ukraine as well. Two soldiers were killed in the clashes, he said.
Speaking in Vienna, Mr. Putin said a weeklong cease-fire announced by President Petro O. Poroshenko on Friday and accepted by the separatists, who want increased autonomy for the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, was insufficient. He said he had told Ukraine, “To declare a cease-fire is not enough; it is necessary to start substantive talks on the nature of the problem.” At the United Nations, Ivan Simonovic, the assistant secretary-general for human rights, told a Security Council briefing on Tuesday that 423 people, including soldiers and civilians, had died in the conflict in east Ukraine from April 15 to June 7.
Mr. Putin said declaring a cease-fire and asking the rebels to disarm without addressing their long-term political grievances would yield nothing. Speaking in Vienna, Mr. Putin said that a weeklong cease-fire announced by President Petro O. Poroshenko of Ukraine on Friday and accepted by the separatists was insufficient. He said he had told Ukraine, “To declare a cease-fire is not enough; it is necessary to start substantive talks on the nature of the problem.”
Mr. Putin said declaring a cease-fire and asking the rebels to disarm without addressing their long-term political grievances would yield nothing. The separatists want increased autonomy for Donetsk and Luhansk, and the government has said it is amenable to changes in the Constitution, though whether that will be enough to satisfy their opponents is an open question.
“If we see there are substantive talks, so that people in eastern Ukraine can finally understand how their legal interests will be guaranteed, then there is a high possibility of success,” Mr. Putin said at a news conference.“If we see there are substantive talks, so that people in eastern Ukraine can finally understand how their legal interests will be guaranteed, then there is a high possibility of success,” Mr. Putin said at a news conference.
Mr. Putin said he was “pleased” by the first contacts on Monday between the Kiev authorities and the rebel representatives of Donetsk and Luhansk. “No big agreements were reached, but the fact that the dialogue has begun is a highly important moment,” he said. Mr. Putin said he was pleased by the first contacts on Monday between the Kiev authorities and the rebel representatives of Donetsk and Luhansk. “No big agreements were reached, but the fact that the dialogue has begun is a highly important moment,” he said.
The Russian president listed some of his standard complaints about Ukraine, including that it had not done enough to disarm a rabidly anti-Russian group called Right Sector. Without that, Mr. Putin said, it did not make sense to call on the militias in the east to disarm.The Russian president listed some of his standard complaints about Ukraine, including that it had not done enough to disarm a rabidly anti-Russian group called Right Sector. Without that, Mr. Putin said, it did not make sense to call on the militias in the east to disarm.
Mr. Putin was in Vienna to help push for a new, southern route for Russian gas exports in the face of European opposition. Russia is seeking alternative routes for its troubled exports via Ukraine, with the Ukrainian portion of the exports again shut down over pricing and political disputes. Mr. Putin was in Vienna to help push for a new, southern route for Russian gas exports in the face of European opposition. Russia is seeking alternative routes for its troubled pipeline to Europe through Ukraine, with the Ukrainian portion of the exports again shut down over pricing and political disputes.
The energy giant Gazprom, owned 50 percent by the Russian government, signed a deal on Tuesday with OMV, an Austrian oil and gas company, for a joint construction project for the Austrian segment of the southern pipeline known as the Southern Stream. Before Mr. Putin left for Vienna, his spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, issued a statement saying that Mr. Putin had sent a formal request to the Federation Council, the upper house of Russia’s Parliament, to rescind what was tantamount to an endorsement to invade Ukraine passed on March 1. Russia used its military that month to annex Crimea, at the time a Ukrainian region, and there has been tension over a possible similar move in the troubled southeastern region of Ukraine.
The European Union has expressed opposition to future construction because Gazprom has balked at European laws that allow for open access to the infrastructure.
Mr. Putin accused the United States of trying to wreck the market for Russian gas in order to export more American gas, and said Russian gas was more competitively priced.
Before Mr. Putin left for Vienna, his spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, issued a statement saying that Mr. Putin had sent a formal request to the Federation Council, the upper house of Russia’s Parliament, to rescind what was tantamount to an endorsement to invade Ukraine passed on March 1. Russia used its military that month to annex Crimea, at the time a Ukrainian region, and there has been tension over a possible similar move in the troubled southeastern region of Ukraine for months.
In his statement, Mr. Peskov said the move to rescind the authorization was “aimed at normalizing the situation in the eastern regions of Ukraine.”In his statement, Mr. Peskov said the move to rescind the authorization was “aimed at normalizing the situation in the eastern regions of Ukraine.”
The changed position was largely symbolic — Mr. Putin can get whatever he needs from Parliament at any time, and indeed, members of the upper house said it would make the change Wednesday. But the change was one step requested by the United States and other Western powers to indicate that Moscow was serious in seeking a negotiated solution to the conflict in Ukraine. The changed position was largely symbolic: Mr. Putin can get whatever he needs from Parliament at any time, and members of the upper house said it would make the change on Wednesday. But the change was one step requested by the United States and other Western powers to indicate that Moscow was serious in seeking a negotiated solution in Ukraine.
It came after a rough deal was worked out on Monday involving all sides for a temporary cease-fire lasting through Friday. Russia had been pressuring Ukraine to talk directly to the rebels, and Mr. Putin’s public move to take the Russian armed forces out of the equation was evidently a means to endorse the first results from the talks. It came after a rough deal was worked out Monday involving all sides for a temporary cease-fire lasting through Friday. Russia had been pressuring Ukraine to talk directly to the rebels, and Mr. Putin’s public move to take the Russian armed forces out of the equation was evidently a means to endorse the first results from the talks.
In announcing a 15-point peace plan on Friday, and again in a speech to the nation on Saturday, Mr. Poroshenko ruled out talks with those in the southeast who had taken up arms against the Ukrainian government. The separatists in turn rejected the idea of talking directly with the government.
Mr. Putin cautiously endorsed the plan over the weekend, but demanded direct talks. President Obama spoke by telephone on Monday with Mr. Putin, and the White House said Mr. Obama had pressed Mr. Putin to aid Mr. Poroshenko’s efforts to defuse the crisis.
The West has accused Moscow of supporting, if not directing, the separatist movement by dispatching Russian mercenaries. Moscow has denied any direct role and has said it has no control over volunteer fighters. But the United States has been leading the effort to impose new sanctions.
In Kiev, Mr. Poroshenko issued a statement calling the move by Mr. Putin “the first practical step” by Moscow to resolve the crisis in the east since the Russian leader endorsed the peace plan.In Kiev, Mr. Poroshenko issued a statement calling the move by Mr. Putin “the first practical step” by Moscow to resolve the crisis in the east since the Russian leader endorsed the peace plan.
The Poroshenko peace plan proposes amnesty for rebel fighters who have not committed serious crimes, as well as safe passage for mercenaries seeking to return to Russia. It also calls for decentralization of the national government, which would allow for greater self-rule in the east, a key Russian demand. The West has accused Moscow of supporting, if not directing, the separatist movement by dispatching Russian mercenaries. Moscow has denied any direct role and has said it has no control over volunteer fighters. But the United States has been leading the effort to impose new sanctions.
At their meeting on Monday, European foreign ministers imposed a ban on imports of goods made in Crimea. But they stopped short of endorsing further sanctions. The Poroshenko peace plan proposes amnesty for rebel fighters who have not committed serious crimes, as well as safe passage for mercenaries seeking to return to Russia. It also calls for decentralization of the national government, which would allow for greater self-rule in the east, a critical Russian demand.
Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the German foreign minister, who has been shuttling for months to try to defuse the Ukraine crisis, headed to Kiev once more on Tuesday to try to build on the progress made with the cease-fire. His main proposals include sending a police training mission to help restore law and order in Ukraine.