NATO TO RUSSIA: Cease Your 'Illegal Military Actions' In Ukraine Immediately

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <header class="header" style="margin: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 10px;"><h1 class="headline" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-hyphens: none; font-weight: 300; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 20px; padding-right: 40px; padding-top: 15px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">NATO TO RUSSIA: Cease Your 'Illegal Military Actions' In Ukraine Immediately</span></span></h1> </header><div class="credit-bar clearfix " style="padding: 10px; zoom: 1;"> <div class="credit-bar-inner" style="float: left; max-width: 380px;"> <div class="credit" style="float: left;"> <span style="color: black;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><a data-rapid_p="1" data-ylk="sec:content;slk:provider;itc:0;tar:www.businessinsider.com;ltxt:BusinessInsider;" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><img alt="Business Insider" class="provider-img inview" src="http://media.zenfs.com/284/2011/06/08/biz-insider-65x27_102440.gif" style="-webkit-transform: translateZ(0px); -webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; display: inline-block; margin-right: 3px; max-height: 30px; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: middle; visibility: visible !important; width: auto;" /></a> <div class="credit-text" style="display: inline-block; vertical-align: middle;"> <cite class="byline vcard top-line" style="font-style: normal;">By <span class="fn" style="font-weight: bold; margin-right: 3px;">Brett LoGiurato</span></cite><span class="bottom-line" style="display: block;"></span></div> </span></span></div> <div class="yom-share-btns-container light" id="mediacontentsharebuttons-light" style="border: 0px; padding: 0px 0.7692em; position: absolute; right: 0px;"> <div class="share-btns-int-container" style="display: table-cell; float: right; padding-left: 10px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div class="clearfix" style="zoom: 1;"> </div> </div> <div class="body yom-art-content clearfix" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Article" style="margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px 10px; zoom: 1;"> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> </div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> </div> <div class="yom-figure " style="float: none; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden; width: 1200px;"> <figure class="cover get-lbdata-from-dom go-to-slideshow-lightbox" data-orig-index="0" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1409334992439_719" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><a class="cover-anchor" data-rapid_p="6" href="" id="cover-0dd018dd28d613cf5ab8e371f8ba4c0c" name="cover-0dd018dd28d613cf5ab8e371f8ba4c0c" style="position: absolute; top: -60px;"></a><span class="icon-slideshow icon-white-slideshow" style="background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; background-size: cover; border-bottom-left-radius: 7px; border-bottom-right-radius: 7px; border-top-left-radius: 7px; border-top-right-radius: 7px; cursor: pointer; height: 54px; left: 50%; margin-left: -38px; margin-top: -27px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-indent: 0px; top: 50%; width: 76px; z-index: 1;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">.</span></span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img alt="Vladimir Putin" border="0" class="editorial inview" data-preembed="image" height="841" src="http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/rfN149ogNkdNMcFFCJqgXg--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NTt3PTEyMDA-/http://globalfinance.zenfs.com/en_us/Finance/US_AFTP_SILICONALLEY_H_LIVE/NATO_TO_RUSSIA_Cease_Your-081356fdbdd4dd1549c390620d854529" style="-webkit-transform: translate3d(0px, 0px, 0px); -webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; display: inline; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; min-height: 1px; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: bottom; visibility: visible !important; width: 698px;" width="1200" /></span></figure></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> </div> <div class="source" style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">AP</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">NATO on Friday accused Russia of a "blatant violation of Ukraine's sovereignty" and urged it to immediately cease its "illegal military actions" in eastern regions of the country.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">NATO  Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said despite "hollow denials" by Russia, it was clear it was involved in "direct military operations" in Ukraine.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">"We condemn in the strongest terms Russia’s continued disregard of its international obligations. We urge Russia to cease its illegal military actions, stop its support to armed separatists, and take immediate and verifiable steps towards de-escalation of this grave crisis," Rasmussen said in a statement.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Rasmussen's statement came after NATO convened an emergency meeting Friday in Brussels, Belgium, over the crisis at the request of Ukrainian authorities.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">This week, the rebels have opened a new front  in the cities of Amvrosiivka and Starobeshevo. One  fear is that Russia is attempting to create a land link between Russia and the strategic peninsula of Crimea, which Russia <a data-rapid_p="7" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russias-crimea-takeover-in-3-photos-2014-3" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">annexed</a> with special forces troops in March. Poroshenko said Russian t roops are  <a data-rapid_p="8" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/ukrainian-sargent-this-is-now-a-war-with-russia-2014-8" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">leading</a>  a separatist counteroffensive in the east, bringing in tanks and firing artillery from inside Ukrainian territory.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">On Thursday, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said Russian troops had crossed the border <a data-rapid_p="9" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/ukrainian-president-russian-troops-are-advancing-in-ukraine-2014-8" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">and were fighting on the side of the pro-Russian separatists</a>. NATO subsequently backed up his allegations, releasing <a data-rapid_p="10" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/nato-satellite-photo-evidence-russia-lying-about-ukraine-2014-8" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">satellite photos it said showed Russian forces</a> and artillery inside Ukraine. NATO said more than 1,000 Russian troops were fighting in Ukraine.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">"Despite Moscow’s hollow denials, it is now clear that Russian troops and equipment have illegally crossed the border into eastern and south-eastern Ukraine. This is not an isolated action, but part of a dangerous pattern over many months to destabilize Ukraine as a sovereign nation," Rasmussen said Friday.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">"Russian forces are engaged in direct military operations inside Ukraine. Russia continues to supply the separatists with tanks, armored vehicles, artillery and rocket launchers. Russia has fired on Ukraine from both Russian territory and within Ukraine itself. Moreover, Russia continues to maintain thousands of combat-ready troops close to Ukraine’s borders. This is a blatant violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. It defies all diplomatic efforts for a peaceful solution."</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Ukrainian Prime Minister  Arseny Yatsenyuk said Friday that Ukraine would attempt to become a member of NATO, something that could further increase tensions with Russia, which wants to maintain influence over its neighbor. Yatsenyuk said Ukraine's priority remains membership in the European Union.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> </div> <div class="yom-figure " style="float: none; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden; width: 1200px;"> <figure class="cover get-lbdata-from-dom go-to-slideshow-lightbox" data-orig-index="1" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1409334992439_226" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><a class="cover-anchor" data-rapid_p="11" href="" id="cover-c8ed0444085c4e9ed1525590b4681824" name="cover-c8ed0444085c4e9ed1525590b4681824" style="position: absolute; top: -60px;"></a><span class="icon-slideshow icon-white-slideshow" style="background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; background-size: cover; border-bottom-left-radius: 7px; border-bottom-right-radius: 7px; border-top-left-radius: 7px; border-top-right-radius: 7px; cursor: pointer; height: 54px; left: 50%; margin-left: -38px; margin-top: -27px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-indent: 0px; top: 50%; width: 76px; z-index: 1;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">.</span></span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><img alt="Ukraine map" border="0" class="editorial inview" data-preembed="image" height="998" src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/B5gN4sG6jsa6Gd7DD0ZuDg--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NTt3PTEyMDA-/http://globalfinance.zenfs.com/en_us/Finance/US_AFTP_SILICONALLEY_H_LIVE/NATO_TO_RUSSIA_Cease_Your-031458f706244ec1d6e4331e86145394" style="-webkit-transform: translate3d(0px, 0px, 0px); -webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; display: inline; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; min-height: 1px; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: bottom; visibility: visible !important; width: 698px;" width="1200" /></span></figure></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> </div> <div class="source" style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Ukraine National Security and Defense Council</span></div> <div class="caption" style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The situation in eastern Ukraine on Friday, Aug. 29.</span></div> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b>More From Business Insider </b></span><ul style="list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> <li style="list-style: none;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><a data-rapid_p="12" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/us-syria-coordination-against-isis-wh-denies-2014-8" style="text-decoration: none;">WHITE HOUSE: The US Is Not Giving Information To Assad</a></span></span></li> <li style="list-style: none;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><a data-rapid_p="13" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/putin-poroshenko-ukraine-russia-obama-2014-8" style="text-decoration: none;">The US Warns Russia About Its 'Significant Escalation' In Ukraine Ahead Of A Crucial Meeting</a></span></span></li> <li style="list-style: none;"><a data-rapid_p="14" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russia-military-trucks-leave-ukraine-obama-putin-2014-8" style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black;">Russia's 'Military Trucks' Have Now Left Ukraine</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div>

NATO TO RUSSIA: Cease Your 'Illegal Military Actions' In Ukraine Immediately

NATO TO RUSSIA: Cease Your 'Illegal Military Actions' In Ukraine Immediately   By  Brett LoGiurato . AP ...

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Russia sending aid convoy to Ukraine despite Western warnings of 'invasion pretext'

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <div class="yui-sldshw-displayer" id="displayFrame" style="float: none; height: 378px; margin: 0px; overflow: hidden; position: relative; width: 580px;"> <div class="yui-sldshw-active yui-sldshw-frame" id="frame_fd1fade" style="display: table; height: 378px; opacity: 1; position: absolute; text-align: left; width: 580px; z-index: 2;"> <div class="image-container" id="ic0" style="display: table-cell; height: 378px; margin: 0px auto; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 580px;"> <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/slideshow/idUSKBN0GA0C620140811#a=1" style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;" target="_top"><span style="color: black;"><img alt="A Ukrainian military convoy moves along a road near Donetsk August 9, 2014. REUTERS-Valentyn Ogirenko" id="image0" src="http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20140810&t=2&i=961632191&w=&fh=&fw=&ll=700&pl=378&r=LYNXMPEA7904M" style="border: none; height: 378px; margin: 0px auto; outline: none; position: relative;" /></span></a></div> </div> <div class="yui-sldshw-cached yui-sldshw-frame" id="frame_fd1fade" style="display: table; height: 378px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; text-align: center; visibility: hidden; width: 580px; z-index: 0;"> <div class="image-container" id="ic1" style="display: table-cell; height: 378px; margin: 0px auto; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 580px;"> <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/slideshow/idUSKBN0GA0C620140811#a=2" style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;" target="_top"><span style="color: black;"><img alt="A Ukrainian serviceman sits on a Soviet-made World War Two tank IS-3 which was seized from pro-Russian separatists near Donetsk August 9, 2014. REUTERS-Valentyn Ogirenko" id="image1" src="http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20140811&t=2&i=962580195&w=&fh=&fw=&ll=700&pl=378&r=LYNXMPEA7A0HU" style="border: none; height: 378px; margin: 0px auto; outline: none; position: relative;" /></span></a></div> </div> <div class="yui-sldshw-cached yui-sldshw-frame" id="frame_fd1fade" style="display: table; height: 378px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; text-align: center; visibility: hidden; width: 580px; z-index: 0;"> <div class="image-container" id="ic2" style="display: table-cell; height: 378px; margin: 0px auto; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 580px;"> </div> </div> <div class="yui-sldshw-cached yui-sldshw-frame" id="frame_fd1fade" style="display: table; height: 378px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; text-align: center; visibility: hidden; width: 580px; z-index: 0;"> <div class="image-container" id="ic3" style="display: table-cell; height: 378px; margin: 0px auto; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 580px;"> </div> </div> <div class="yui-sldshw-cached yui-sldshw-frame" id="frame_fd1fade" style="display: table; height: 378px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; text-align: center; visibility: hidden; width: 580px; z-index: 0;"> <div class="image-container" id="ic4" style="display: table-cell; height: 378px; margin: 0px auto; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 580px;"> </div> </div> <div class="yui-sldshw-cached yui-sldshw-frame" id="frame_fd1fade" style="display: table; height: 378px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; text-align: center; visibility: hidden; width: 580px; z-index: 0;"> <div class="image-container" id="ic5" style="display: table-cell; height: 378px; margin: 0px auto; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 580px;"> <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/slideshow/idUSKBN0GA0C620140811#a=6" style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;" target="_top"><span style="color: black;"><img alt="Passengers exchange farewells with acquaintances before boarding a train terminating in Moscow, at a railway station in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk, August 10, 2014. REUTERS-Sergei Karpukhin" id="image5" src="http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20140811&t=2&i=962580196&w=&fh=&fw=&ll=700&pl=378&r=LYNXMPEA7A0HW" style="border: none; height: 378px; margin: 0px auto; outline: none; position: relative;" /></span></a></div> </div> </div> <div class="rolloverCaption" id="captionContent" style="bottom: -1px; clear: both; float: left; left: 0px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-left: -10px; padding-right: 20px; position: relative; width: 600px !important; z-index: 2;"> <div class="rolloverBg" style="background-image: none; clear: both; float: left; padding-bottom: 0px; width: 610px !important;"> <div class="captionText" style="height: 60px; margin-right: 10px; padding: 10px; position: relative;"> <div style="padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">A Ukrainian military convoy moves along a road near Donetsk August, 2014.</span></div> <div class="credit" style="margin-top: 5px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">CREDIT: REUTERS/VALENTYN OGIRENKO</span></div> <div class="credit" style="margin-top: 5px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">(Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said on Monday</span><span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;"> </span><span class="mandelbrot_refrag" style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;"><a class="mandelbrot_refrag" data-ls-seen="1" href="http://www.reuters.com/places/russia?lc=int_mb_1001" style="color: #006e97; cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;">Russia</a></span><span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">is sending an aid convoy to eastern Ukraine despite urgent Western warnings against using humanitarian help as a pretext for an invasion.</span></div> </div> </div> </div> <div style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; orphans: auto; padding: 0px; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> <br /></div> <div style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; orphans: auto; padding: 0px; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> <br /></div> <div style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; orphans: auto; padding: 0px; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> <br /></div> <div style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; orphans: auto; padding: 0px; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> With Ukraine reporting <span class="mandelbrot_refrag"><a class="mandelbrot_refrag" data-ls-seen="1" href="http://www.reuters.com/places/russia?lc=int_mb_1001" style="color: #006e97; cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;">Russia</a></span> has massed 45,000 troops on its border, NATO said there was a "high probability" that Moscow could intervene militarily in the country's east, where Kiev's forces are closing in on pro-Russian separatists.</div> <div style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; orphans: auto; padding: 0px; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> Western countries believe that Putin - who has whipped up the passions of Russians with a nationalist campaign in state-controlled media since annexing Crimea from Ukraine in March - could now send his forces into the east to head off a humiliating rebel defeat.</div> <div style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; orphans: auto; padding: 0px; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> Thousands of people are believed to be short of water, electricity and medical aid due to the fighting, but U.S. President Barack Obama told his Ukrainian counterpart that any Russian intervention without Kiev's consent would be unacceptable and violate international law.</div> <div style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; orphans: auto; padding: 0px; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso delivered a blunter message directly to Putin in a telephone call on Monday. "President Barroso warned against any unilateral military actions in Ukraine, under any pretext, including humanitarian," the Commission said in a statement.</div> <div style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; orphans: auto; padding: 0px; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> The Kremlin, in its own account of the conversation, made clear that Moscow would indeed send help to largely Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine.</div> <div style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; orphans: auto; padding: 0px; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> "It was noted that the Russian side, in collaboration with representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross, is sending an aid convoy to Ukraine," the Kremlin statement said, without revealing when the convoy was going.</div> <span class="focusParagraph" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><span id="midArticle_1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><span id="midArticle_2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><span id="midArticle_3" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><span id="midArticle_4" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><span id="midArticle_5" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><span id="midArticle_6" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><span id="midArticle_7" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans;"></span><br /> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">In a cautious response, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it had submitted a document to Russian and Ukrainian officials on delivering aid. However, the independent agency stressed in a statement that it needed agreement from all parties as well as security guarantees to carry out the operation, as it does not use armed escorts.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">"The practical details of this operation need to be clarified before this initiative can move forward," said Laurent Corbaz, head of ICRC operations for Europe and Central Asia.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">According to U.N. agencies, more than 1,100 people have been killed including government forces, rebels and civilians in the four months since the separatists seized territory in the east and Kiev launched its crackdown.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> </div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">UKRAINE SEEKS INTERNATIONAL EFFORT</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko came out in support of an aid mission but made clear it had to be an international effort under the aegis of the ICRC, involving the European Union as well as Russia.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">He won Obama's backing when they spoke by phone on Monday.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The White House quoted Obama as saying that any Russian intervention without the Ukrainian government's agreement would be "unacceptable" and a violation of international law.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Earlier, Kiev said it was in the "final stages" of recapturing the eastern city of Donetsk - the main base of the separatist rebels - in a battle that could mark a turning point in a conflict that has caused the biggest confrontation between Russia and the West since the Cold War.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">An industrial metropolis with a pre-war population of nearly 1 million, Donetsk rocked to the crash of shells and gunfire over the weekend, and heavy guns boomed through the night into Monday from the outskirts of the city.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said there was no sign Russia had withdrawn the troops it had massed at the Ukrainian frontier. Asked in a Reuters interview how he rated the chances of Russian military intervention, Rasmussen said: "There is a high probability."</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">"We see the Russians developing the narrative and the pretext for such an operation under the guise of a humanitarian operation, and we see a military build-up that could be used to conduct such illegal military operations in Ukraine," he said.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> </div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">SAVING THE REBELS</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">NATO fears Moscow would use any aid mission as a cover to save the rebels, who are fighting for control of two provinces under the banner of "New Russia", a term Putin has used for southern and eastern Ukraine, where mostly Russian is spoken.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Ukraine appears to be pressing ahead with its offensive, undeterred by the presence of what NATO says are about 20,000 Russian troops massed on the nearby border for a potential ground invasion.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Kiev put the size of the Russian forces much higher. "As of 11 o'clock today, about 45,000 troops of the armed forces and internal forces of the Russian Federation are concentrated in border areas," Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko told a briefing.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">He said they were supported by 160 tanks, 1,360 armoured vehicles, 390 artillery systems, up to 150 Grad missile launchers, 192 fighter aircraft and 137 attack helicopters.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Lysenko said Ukrainian government forces had finally succeeded in cutting off the road between Donetsk and Luhansk, the other main rebel-held city, which is closer to the Russian border. Kiev and its Western allies say the route has been the principal means of supplying the rebels in Donetsk with weapons.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Fighting in recent weeks has focused on the route, near where Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crashed in July, killing all 298 people on board. Washington says the plane was almost certainly shot down accidentally by rebels using an advanced Russian missile. Moscow denies this.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">"The forces of the anti-terrorist operation are preparing for the final stage of liberating Donetsk," Lysenko told Reuters. "Our forces have completely cut Donetsk off from Luhansk. We are working to liberate both cities, but it's better to liberate Donetsk first - it is more important."</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The leader of the rebels in Donetsk, Alexander Zakharchenko, a local man who took over the leadership from a Russian citizen last week, said the fighters were considering mounting a counter-attack against government forces in the next two or three days.</span></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">And a volunteer government fighter suggested claims that government forces were about to take Donetsk were inflated. "Taking the town is an extremely complicated business and painful ... It will take, at the very least, several weeks," said Andriy Beletsky, commander of the so-called Azov battalion.</span></div> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span id="midArticle_9"></span><span id="midArticle_10"></span><span id="midArticle_11"></span><span id="midArticle_12"></span><span id="midArticle_13"></span><span id="midArticle_14"></span><span id="midArticle_15"></span><span id="midArticle_0"></span><span id="midArticle_1"></span><span id="midArticle_2"></span><span id="midArticle_3"></span><span id="midArticle_4"></span><span id="midArticle_5"></span><span id="midArticle_6"></span><span id="midArticle_7"></span><span id="midArticle_8"></span><span id="midArticle_9"></span><span id="midArticle_10"></span><span id="midArticle_11"></span><span id="midArticle_12"></span><span id="midArticle_13"></span><span id="midArticle_14"></span><span id="midArticle_15"></span></span><br /> <div style="margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px;"> </div> <span id="midArticle_16" style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"></span><br /> <div style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; orphans: auto; padding: 0px; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"> Municipal authorities in Donetsk said artillery shelling knocked out power stations in the city and hit a high-security prison, killing one inmate and allowing more than 100 criminals to escape.</div> </div>

Russia sending aid convoy to Ukraine despite Western warnings of 'invasion pretext'

A Ukrainian military convoy moves along a road near Donetsk August, 2014. CREDIT: REUTERS/VALENTYN OGIRENKO...

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Russia bans all U.S. food, EU fruit and vegetables in sanctions response; NATO fears invasion

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <header class="header" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1407398821290_1280" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16.25px; margin: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 10px;"><h1 class="headline" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1407398821290_1279" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; font-size: 35px; font-weight: 300; line-height: 42px; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 20px; padding-right: 40px; padding-top: 15px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> Russia bans all U.S. food, EU fruit and vegetables in sanctions response; NATO fears invasion</h1> </header><div class="credit-bar clearfix " id="yui_3_16_0_1_1407398821290_1284" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.200000762939453px; padding: 10px; zoom: 1;"> <div class="interest-bar" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1407398821290_1292" style="margin-bottom: 5px; 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height: 200px; left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: background-color 0.24s linear; width: 300px;"> <span class="icon-slideshow icon-white-slideshow-small" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.16s linear; background-color: #324fe1; background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: cover; border-bottom-left-radius: 7px; border-bottom-right-radius: 7px; border-top-left-radius: 7px; border-top-right-radius: 7px; cursor: pointer; height: 45px; left: 150px; line-height: 0; margin-left: -32px; margin-top: -23px; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-indent: -1000em; top: 100px; transition: opacity 0.16s linear; width: 64px; z-index: 1;">.</span><div class="cta-text small" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; color: white; font-size: 14px; margin-top: 30px; opacity: 0; position: relative; text-align: center; top: 100px; transition: opacity 0.24s linear;"> View gallery</div> </div> </figure><div class="caption" style="color: grey; font-size: 12px; margin-top: 10px; max-width: 100%;"> A Ukrainian serviceman checks a car at a checkpoint near the eastern Ukrainian town of Debaltseve August …</div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="body yom-art-content clearfix" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1407398821290_1329" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Article" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 20px; padding: 0px 10px; zoom: 1;"> <div class="yom-ad yom-ad-LREC" id="yom-ad-LREC" style="background-color: #fafafc; border: none; clear: both; float: right; height: 250px; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em 10px; max-height: 250px; text-align: center; visibility: inherit; width: 300px;"> <div class="darla" id="sb_rel_yom-ad-LREC-iframe" style="display: inline-block; font-size: 0px; height: 250px; margin-bottom: 10px; position: relative; visibility: inherit; width: 300px; z-index: 9;"> <iframe allowtransparency="true" async="" frameborder="no" hidefocus="true" id="yom-ad-LREC-iframe" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://l.yimg.com/rq/darla/2-8-1/html/r-sf.html" style="display: block; height: 250px; left: 0px; margin: 0px auto; max-height: none; max-width: none; min-height: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; visibility: inherit; width: 300px; z-index: 10;" tabindex="-1"></iframe><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; text-align: left;">By Polina Devitt and Maria Tsvetkova</span></div> </div> <div class="body-slot-mod" style="clear: right; float: right; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.307695388793945px; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em 10px; max-width: 300px;"> <div class="yom-remote"> <div class="" id="mediacontentrelatedstory_container"> <section class="yom-mod " data-ylk="mid:mediacontentrelatedstory;mpos:1;elm:hdln;elmt:ct;cat:Related Stories;rspns:nav;t1:a3;t2:lst-ct;itc:0;sec:lst-ct;" id="mediacontentrelatedstory" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="yom-related-story-module story" style="font-size: 13px; margin-bottom: 40px;"> <div class="hd"> <h2 style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19.5px; margin: 0.55em 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"> Related Stories</h2> </div> <div class="bd"> <div class="latest-content-inline"> <ul style="list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> <li class="list-item story" data-uuid="77c4fb00-ba19-3878-bb06-0f76317ded15" style="display: block; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 10px; overflow: hidden; position: relative; zoom: 1;"><a data-rapid_p="1" data-ylk="itc:0;tar:news.yahoo.com;ct:1;sec:lst-ct;cpos:1;test:;g:77c4fb00-ba19-3878-bb06-0f76317ded15;pkgt:2;prov:Reuters;" href="http://news.yahoo.com/eighteen-ukrainian-soldiers-killed-latest-separatist-clashes-kiev-111104789.html" style="color: #324fe1; margin-right: 6px; text-decoration: none;">Eighteen Ukrainian soldiers killed in latest separatist clashes: Kiev military</a> <span class="source" style="color: #1e7d8e;">Reuters</span></li> <li class="list-item story" data-uuid="e7c4c5a0-4a9f-364b-8bfa-702f643cd624" style="display: block; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 10px; overflow: hidden; position: relative; zoom: 1;"><a data-rapid_p="2" data-ylk="itc:0;tar:news.yahoo.com;ct:1;sec:lst-ct;cpos:2;test:;g:e7c4c5a0-4a9f-364b-8bfa-702f643cd624;pkgt:2;prov:Reuters;" href="http://news.yahoo.com/moscow-fights-back-sanctions-battle-rages-near-ukraine-041447302--sector.html" style="color: #324fe1; margin-right: 6px; text-decoration: none;">Moscow fights back after sanctions; battle rages near Ukraine crash site</a> <span class="source" style="color: #1e7d8e;">Reuters</span></li> <li class="list-item story" data-uuid="9e2c212d-7154-34e4-bc49-cd8f2c285c22" style="display: block; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 10px; overflow: hidden; position: relative; zoom: 1;"><a data-rapid_p="3" data-ylk="itc:0;tar:news.yahoo.com;ct:1;sec:lst-ct;cpos:3;test:;g:9e2c212d-7154-34e4-bc49-cd8f2c285c22;pkgt:2;prov:AFP;" href="http://news.yahoo.com/nato-chief-visit-ukraine-amid-russia-border-tensions-152104804.html" style="color: #324fe1; margin-right: 6px; text-decoration: none;">NATO chief flies to Ukraine amid Russian troop buildup fears</a> <span class="source" style="color: #1e7d8e;">AFP</span></li> <li class="list-item story" data-uuid="f551e369-4de3-3983-945a-a15c8bdf3d9a" style="display: block; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 10px; overflow: hidden; position: relative; zoom: 1;"><a data-rapid_p="4" data-ylk="itc:0;tar:news.yahoo.com;ct:1;sec:lst-ct;cpos:4;test:;g:f551e369-4de3-3983-945a-a15c8bdf3d9a;pkgt:2;prov:Reuters;" href="http://news.yahoo.com/russia-escalates-economic-battle-u-eu-food-import-005111362--sector.html" style="color: #324fe1; margin-right: 6px; text-decoration: none;">Russia escalates economic battle with U.S., EU with food import ban</a> <span class="source" style="color: #1e7d8e;">Reuters</span></li> <li class="list-item story" data-uuid="c7359c1d-b61b-378b-8263-8e759d99605b" style="display: block; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 10px; overflow: hidden; position: relative; zoom: 1;"><a data-rapid_p="5" data-ylk="itc:0;tar:news.yahoo.com;ct:1;sec:lst-ct;cpos:5;test:;g:c7359c1d-b61b-378b-8263-8e759d99605b;pkgt:2;prov:Reuters;" href="http://news.yahoo.com/russia-ban-u-poultry-imports-veterinary-181123791.html" style="color: #324fe1; margin-right: 6px; text-decoration: none;">Russia promises 'quite substantial' U.S., EU food import bans</a> <span class="source" style="color: #1e7d8e;">Reuters</span></li> <li class="list-item story" data-uuid="c7359c1d-b61b-378b-8263-8e759d99605b" style="display: block; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 10px; overflow: hidden; position: relative; zoom: 1;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px;">MOSCOW/DONETSK Ukraine (Reuters) - Russia will ban all imports of food from the United States and all fruit and vegetables from Europe, the state news agency reported on Wednesday, a sweeping response to Western sanctions imposed over its support for rebels in Ukraine.</span></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </section></div> </div> </div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> The measures will hit consumers at home who rely on cheap imports, and on farmers in the West for whom Russia is a big market. Moscow is by far the biggest buyer of European fruit and vegetables and the second biggest importer of U.S. poultry.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> RIA quoted the spokesman for Russia's food safety watchdog VPSS, Alexei Alexeenko, as saying all European fruit and vegetables and all produce from the United States would be included in a ban drawn up on the orders of President Vladimir Putin to punish countries that imposed sanctions on Russia.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Earlier, Alexeenko told Reuters bans on EU and U.S. goods would be "quite substantial", and would specifically include U.S. poultry, although he declined to give a full list of banned goods. He could not be reached again after the RIA report.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> The war of economic sanctions has escalated even as fighting has intensified on the ground in eastern Ukraine in the three weeks since a Malaysian airliner was shot down over territory held by pro-Russian rebels.</div> <div class="body-related" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px; position: relative;"> <a class="body-related-link body-related-image go-to-slideshow-lightbox rapid-noclick-resp landscape onesize get-lbdata-from-dom" data-pos="1" data-rapid_p="9" data-uuid="f3ef5d28-ee4b-3c84-b3c0-d215fa4de573" data-ylk="t1:a3;t2:ct-mod;t3:embd;sec:ct-mod;slk:expand;elm:img;elmt:ct;itc:1;g:27a9a292-538a-3922-bfd7-fa05fb5c0950;aid:f3ef5d28-ee4b-3c84-b3c0-d215fa4de573;ct:4;cpos:1;" href="http://news.yahoo.com/photos/ukrainian-servicemen-drive-military-armoured-vehicle-along-road-photo-162355791.html" style="color: #324fe1; display: block; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 300px; position: relative; text-decoration: none;" title="Ukrainian servicemen drive a military armoured vehicle&nbsp;&hellip;"><div class="img-wrap" style="position: relative;"> <div class="cta-overlay" style="-webkit-transition: background-color 0.24s linear; font-size: 13px; height: 200px; left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: background-color 0.24s linear; width: 300px;"> <span class="clearfix title cta-text medium" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; color: white; font-size: 16px; left: 5px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; top: 5px; transition: opacity 0.24s linear; white-space: pre-wrap; width: 270px; zoom: 1;"></span><span class="cta-text xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; bottom: 5px; color: white; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 42px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; transition: opacity 0.24s linear;">View gallery</span><span class="icon-slideshow icon-white-slideshow-xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.16s linear; background-color: #324fe1; background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: cover; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; bottom: 5px; cursor: pointer; height: 23px; left: 5px; line-height: 0; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-indent: -1000em; transition: opacity 0.16s linear; width: 32px; z-index: 1;"></span></div> <img alt="Ukrainian servicemen drive a military armoured vehicle&nbsp;&hellip;" class="body-related-thumb" data-src-2x="" height="200" src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/Ts92fI4_VWku_0jzNxLtpA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTIwMDtxPTc1O3c9MzAw/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/Reuters/2014-08-06T162355Z_1_LYNXMPEA750RQ_RTROPTP_2_UKRAINE-CRISIS.JPG" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat; border: 0px; display: block; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: baseline; visibility: visible !important;" width="300" /></div> </a><div class="body-related-title photo-caption" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: grey; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16.5px; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; padding: 5px 5px 0px 0px; position: relative; width: 300px;"> Ukrainian servicemen drive a military armoured vehicle along a road in Donetsk region August 6, 2014 …</div> </div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> NATO said on Wednesday Russia had massed around 20,000 combat-ready troops on Ukraine's border and could use the pretext of a humanitarian mission to invade. It was the starkest warning yet from the Western alliance that Moscow could mount a ground assault on its neighbour.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> As rebels have lost ground to Ukrainian government troops, Russia announced military exercises this week near the border.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> "We're not going to guess what's on Russia's mind, but we can see what Russia is doing on the ground – and that is of great concern. Russia has amassed around 20,000 combat-ready troops on Ukraine’s eastern border," NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said in an emailed statement.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Moscow could use "the pretext of a humanitarian or peace-keeping mission as an excuse to send troops into Eastern Ukraine", she said. A NATO military officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Russia's build-up at the border included tanks, infantry, artillery, air defence systems, logistics troops, special forces, and aircraft.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> A Russian defence ministry spokesman dismissed the NATO accusations: "We've been hearing this for three months already."</div> <div class="body-related" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px; position: relative;"> <a class="body-related-link body-related-image go-to-slideshow-lightbox rapid-noclick-resp landscape onesize get-lbdata-from-dom" data-pos="2" data-rapid_p="10" data-uuid="92a18ff1-fe1d-3351-8915-30dbb2780b26" data-ylk="t1:a3;t2:ct-mod;t3:embd;sec:ct-mod;slk:expand;elm:img;elmt:ct;itc:1;g:27a9a292-538a-3922-bfd7-fa05fb5c0950;aid:92a18ff1-fe1d-3351-8915-30dbb2780b26;ct:4;cpos:2;" href="http://news.yahoo.com/photos/armed-pro-russian-separatists-stand-guard-checkpoint-settlement-photo-142159860.html" style="color: #324fe1; display: block; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 300px; position: relative; text-decoration: none;" title="Armed pro-Russian separatists stand guard at a checkpoint&nbsp;&hellip;"><div class="img-wrap" style="position: relative;"> <div class="cta-overlay" style="-webkit-transition: background-color 0.24s linear; font-size: 13px; height: 196px; left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: background-color 0.24s linear; width: 300px;"> <span class="clearfix title cta-text medium" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; color: white; font-size: 16px; left: 5px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; top: 5px; transition: opacity 0.24s linear; white-space: pre-wrap; width: 270px; zoom: 1;"></span><span class="cta-text xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; bottom: 5px; color: white; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 42px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; transition: opacity 0.24s linear;">View gallery</span><span class="icon-slideshow icon-white-slideshow-xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.16s linear; background-color: #324fe1; background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: cover; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; bottom: 5px; cursor: pointer; height: 23px; left: 5px; line-height: 0; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-indent: -1000em; transition: opacity 0.16s linear; width: 32px; z-index: 1;"></span></div> <img alt="Armed pro-Russian separatists stand guard at a checkpoint&nbsp;&hellip;" class="body-related-thumb" data-src-2x="" height="196" src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/R2jW1BW2DuiO7HlA7lK2Kg--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTE5NjtxPTc1O3c9MzAw/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/Reuters/2014-08-06T142159Z_1_LYNXMPEA750NA_RTROPTP_2_UKRAINE-CRISIS.JPG" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat; border: 0px; display: block; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: baseline; visibility: visible !important;" width="300" /></div> </a><div class="body-related-title photo-caption" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: grey; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16.5px; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; padding: 5px 5px 0px 0px; position: relative; width: 300px;"> Armed pro-Russian separatists stand guard at a checkpoint in the settlement of Yasynuvata outside Do …</div> </div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Moscow annexed Ukraine's Crimea peninsula in the Black Sea in March, and Western countries say it has funded and armed pro-Russian rebels since they rose up in east Ukraine in April.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Over the past two months, government troops have fought back, gaining ground against the rebels, who are led almost exclusively by Russian citizens and have managed to acquire tanks, missiles and other heavy weaponry that Kiev and its Western allies say can only have come from across the frontier.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Kiev said 18 Ukrainian servicemen had been killed and 54 injured in 25 separate clashes over the past day in eastern Ukraine. Military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said troops had been shelled from inside Russian territory and frontier guards had come under a four-hour mortar and artillery attack.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Fighting has intensified since Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crashed on July 17, killing all 298 people on board. Western countries say it was shot down by rebels with an advanced anti-aircraft missile supplied by Russia. Moscow denies blame, and the Russians who command the rebels deny they had such missiles.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> The United States and the EU imposed sanctions on Russia that were mild at first but have been tightened sharply since the airliner was brought down, now targeting Russia's defence, oil and financial sectors.</div> <div class="body-related" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px; position: relative;"> <a class="body-related-link body-related-image go-to-slideshow-lightbox rapid-noclick-resp landscape onesize get-lbdata-from-dom" data-pos="3" data-rapid_p="11" data-uuid="c9e8d3b8-2a2c-326b-bfe0-baf507abb63f" data-ylk="t1:a3;t2:ct-mod;t3:embd;sec:ct-mod;slk:expand;elm:img;elmt:ct;itc:1;g:27a9a292-538a-3922-bfd7-fa05fb5c0950;aid:c9e8d3b8-2a2c-326b-bfe0-baf507abb63f;ct:4;cpos:3;" href="http://news.yahoo.com/photos/ukrainian-servicemen-seen-inside-army-vehicles-road-donetsk-photo-162355124.html" style="color: #324fe1; display: block; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 300px; position: relative; text-decoration: none;" title="Ukrainian servicemen are seen inside army vehicles&nbsp;&hellip;"><div class="img-wrap" style="position: relative;"> <div class="cta-overlay" style="-webkit-transition: background-color 0.24s linear; font-size: 13px; height: 200px; left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: background-color 0.24s linear; width: 300px;"> <span class="clearfix title cta-text medium" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; color: white; font-size: 16px; left: 5px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; top: 5px; transition: opacity 0.24s linear; white-space: pre-wrap; width: 270px; zoom: 1;"></span><span class="cta-text xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; bottom: 5px; color: white; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 42px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; transition: opacity 0.24s linear;">View gallery</span><span class="icon-slideshow icon-white-slideshow-xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.16s linear; background-color: #324fe1; background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: cover; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; bottom: 5px; cursor: pointer; height: 23px; left: 5px; line-height: 0; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-indent: -1000em; transition: opacity 0.16s linear; width: 32px; z-index: 1;"></span></div> <img alt="Ukrainian servicemen are seen inside army vehicles&nbsp;&hellip;" class="body-related-thumb" data-src-2x="" height="200" src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/k3YZTrD3.mTzvnpwL955yQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTIwMDtxPTc1O3c9MzAw/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/Reuters/2014-08-06T162355Z_1_LYNXMPEA750RR_RTROPTP_2_UKRAINE-CRISIS.JPG" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat; border: 0px; display: block; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: baseline; visibility: visible !important;" width="300" /></div> </a><div class="body-related-title photo-caption" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: grey; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16.5px; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; padding: 5px 5px 0px 0px; position: relative; width: 300px;"> Ukrainian servicemen are seen inside army vehicles on a road in Donetsk region August 6, 2014. REUTE …</div> </div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> On Wednesday, Putin ordered his government to come up with a list of agricultural products from countries that had imposed sanctions on Russia, which would be banned in retaliation. He told the government to avoid measures that would hurt Russian consumers, but the blanket bans reported by RIA were about as sweeping as could be.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Russia imported $43 billion worth of food last year. According to the European Commission, Russia bought 28 percent of EU fruit exports and 21.5 percent of its vegetables in 2011.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> It was the second biggest buyer of U.S. poultry after Mexico last year, accounting for 8 percent of U.S. chicken meat exports, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. U.S. poultry has been ubiquitous in Russia since the early days after the Soviet Union, when cheap American chicken quarters sold at street markets were called "Bush's legs" after the president.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> SIEGE Kiev's military offensive has pushed the rebels out of many of their strongholds, leaving them largely besieged in the cities of Donetsk and Luhansk, which the rebels have proclaimed capitals of two "people's republics".</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Residents in Donetsk, east Ukraine's main industrial hub and now the principal rebel redoubt, said Ukrainian warplanes had carried out air strikes overnight.</div> <div class="body-related" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px; position: relative;"> <a class="body-related-link body-related-image go-to-slideshow-lightbox rapid-noclick-resp landscape onesize get-lbdata-from-dom" data-pos="4" data-rapid_p="12" data-uuid="e6d6ccde-b53b-3c21-a4a9-5b60fa43a9aa" data-ylk="t1:a3;t2:ct-mod;t3:embd;sec:ct-mod;slk:expand;elm:img;elmt:ct;itc:1;g:27a9a292-538a-3922-bfd7-fa05fb5c0950;aid:e6d6ccde-b53b-3c21-a4a9-5b60fa43a9aa;ct:4;cpos:4;" href="http://news.yahoo.com/photos/convoy-military-armoured-vehicles-seen-near-checkpoint-road-photo-162355605.html" style="color: #324fe1; display: block; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 300px; position: relative; text-decoration: none;" title="A convoy of military armoured vehicles is seen near&nbsp;&hellip;"><div class="img-wrap" style="position: relative;"> <div class="cta-overlay" style="-webkit-transition: background-color 0.24s linear; font-size: 13px; height: 200px; left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: background-color 0.24s linear; width: 300px;"> <span class="clearfix title cta-text medium" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; color: white; font-size: 16px; left: 5px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; top: 5px; transition: opacity 0.24s linear; white-space: pre-wrap; width: 270px; zoom: 1;"></span><span class="cta-text xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; bottom: 5px; color: white; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 42px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; transition: opacity 0.24s linear;">View gallery</span><span class="icon-slideshow icon-white-slideshow-xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.16s linear; background-color: #324fe1; background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: cover; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; bottom: 5px; cursor: pointer; height: 23px; left: 5px; line-height: 0; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-indent: -1000em; transition: opacity 0.16s linear; width: 32px; z-index: 1;"></span></div> <img alt="A convoy of military armoured vehicles is seen near&nbsp;&hellip;" class="body-related-thumb" data-src-2x="" height="200" src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/kAQUhYapg0PbCzRdsezWGA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTIwMDtxPTc1O3c9MzAw/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/Reuters/2014-08-06T162355Z_1_LYNXMPEA750RM_RTROPTP_2_UKRAINE-CRISIS.JPG" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat; border: 0px; display: block; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: baseline; visibility: visible !important;" width="300" /></div> </a><div class="body-related-title photo-caption" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: grey; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16.5px; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; padding: 5px 5px 0px 0px; position: relative; width: 300px;"> A convoy of military armoured vehicles is seen near a checkpoint on a road in Donetsk region August  …</div> </div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Reuters journalists heard the planes roar overhead and massive explosions during the night. In the morning, an industrial district 2-3 km (1-2 miles) from the city centre was pocked with craters, including two huge holes 7 metres (7 yards) wide and 2 metres deep, ripped into the asphalt.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> "The planes were flying low. Then there were two massive explosions and the glass was blown out of the window. It was terrifying. This is war. There will never be peace," said Nadezhda, a woman who lived nearby.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Government military spokesman Lysenko denied Ukrainian planes had carried out air strikes: "The Ukrainian military does not bomb the towns of Donetsk and Luhansk or any other similar populated places," he said.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Many residents have fled the two cities, but hundreds of thousands of people are still living in them, increasingly fearful that they will bear the brunt of a full-blown assault.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> The latest Russian troop build-up on the border is not the first time Moscow has concentrated forces there: NATO estimated Russia had as many as 40,000 troops in place earlier in the crisis before Putin pulled them back in June.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> But the government's advance since then may be prompting new action from the Kremlin, after months in which state-controlled Russian media have mounted a sustained campaign of anti-Ukrainian agitation and nationalist pride focused on Crimea.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Since March, Putin has vowed to use military force to protect Russian-speaking "compatriots" across the former Soviet Union. He branded southern and eastern Ukraine "New Russia", a name the rebels took up as catch-all for most militia groups.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Most people in eastern and southern Ukraine identify themselves as ethnic Ukrainians who speak Russian as a native language. Outside of the two provinces partly occupied by the armed separatist fighters, most have rallied behind Kiev, despite reservations about the government there.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Wednesday the threat of a direct intervention by Russia's military in Ukraine has risen over the last couple of days.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> A senior U.S. official said Washington was keeping a "very close eye" on Russian activity at the border.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> “The last few weeks have not been good ones for the Russians. They have seen the separatists lose ground and the Malaysian airliner shoot-down was a public relations disaster for the Russians. Unfortunately we have not seen a sense that the Russians are acting on the negative feedback and looking to deescalate. In fact we’ve see signs that Putin seems to be doubling down,” said the official.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> “There’s the buildup on the border, no change in the propaganda machine in Russia, talk of the need for humanitarian peacekeeping in Ukraine itself."</div> <div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1407398821290_1331" style="margin-bottom: 1.1em;"> (Additional reporting by Natalia Zinets and Richard Balmforth in Kiev, Lina Kushch in Donetsk, Barbara Lewis and Tom Koerkemeier in Brussels, Dmitry Zhdannikov and Maria Kiselyova in Moscow, Matt Spetalnick and Mark Hosenball in Washington and Adrian Croft in London; Writing by Peter Graff; editing by David Stamp)</div> </div> </div>

Russia bans all U.S. food, EU fruit and vegetables in sanctions response; NATO fears invasion

Russia bans all U.S. food, EU fruit and vegetables in sanctions response; NATO fears invasion . View galle...

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