New Russian Military Exercises Ordered On Ukrainian Border

New Russian Military Exercises Ordered On Ukrainian Border

Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin ordered new war exercises on the Russian-Ukrainian border as the standoff between the two countries has not changed since the ouster of pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovich.

According to the Russian Defence Ministry, the exercise involved close to 8,500 troops that practiced firing artillery and rocket launchers at an enemy situated 9 miles away. This is the second largest military exercise since the crisis began. The largest was held a couple of days before Russian forces captured Crimea and President Vladimir Putin declared his right to invade in order to protect the Russian minority in the peninsula.

The show of power came directly after E.U. and U.S. leaders vowed to harshly sanction Russia should they annex Crimea after the referendum that will be held this Sunday.

Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a short telephone conversation about the referendum before their scheduled meeting in London on Thursday.

According to a senior state department official, the meeting was constructive as John Kerry reiterated his concerns about the possible annexation of the Crimean peninsula and reminded that there will be harsh economic sanctions if Russia should proceed.

The European Union announced a framework to impose travel bans and asset freezes on Russian companies and individuals if the Sunday referendum would take place.

Posted by James Fried on Friday March 14 2014, 4:24 AM EST. Ref: nydailynews. Link. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, World. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0