Soldiers wearing uniforms without national markings were deployed when Russia entered Crimea from late February. Although President Vladimir Putin initially denied involvement, he admitted in April that Russian forces had been active there.
U.S. Air Force Gen. Philip Breedlove, NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe, said although NATO had no plans to intervene in non-NATO member Ukraine, NATO countries in eastern Europe needed to start preparing for a possible threat from "little green men" - referring to soldiers in unmarked uniforms.
"The most important work to prepare a nation for the problem of 'little green men', or organizing of Russian (speaking) population, it happens first. It happens now," Breedlove said in an interview published online by German newspaper Die Welt.
"How do we now train, organize, equip the police forces and the military forces of (allied) nations to be able to deal with this?" he said, according to a transcript of his remarks in English provided by NATO.
- "If we see these actions taking place in a NATO nation and we are able to attribute them to an aggressor nation, that is Article 5. Now, it is a military response," he said.
The Ukraine crisis has dragged relations between Russia and the West to their lowest point since the Cold War and set off a round of trade restrictions that are hurting struggling economies in both Russia and Europe.
NATO has taken a series of steps to reinforce its military presence in eastern Europe since the crisis began. Longer term measures are expected to be agreed at a NATO summit in Wales in September. REUTERS
http://www.todayonline.com/world/nato-would-respond-militarily-crimea-style-infiltration-general
17/8/14
--
-
Related:
Ukrainian President Speaks to US Vice President for 5th Time in August / Ukraine FM calls on NATO, EU to give military support
Rebels down Ukrainian warplane as military equipment ‘arrives from Russia’...
Russian and Ukrainian customs officials and border guards have agreed on inspecting the first group of trucks with humanitarian aid for residents of war-torn eastern Ukraine, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reported on Sunday.....
Ukraine-Krise: Erneut Militärkonvoi aus Russland eingedrungen...
GR
FR
DE
ES
IT
RU
EU
Ukraine: Sunday, August 17....
ReplyDelete14:22 GMT:
Unknown malefactors have damaged the stone cross on the grave of Ukrainian nationalist Stepan Bandera in Munich’s Waldfriedhof cemetery, RIA Novosti reports. Police said that an initial report that the tomb had been blown up was not true. A police representative said the cross over the grave had been nearly knocked over completely. Police are investigating the incident.
Stepan Bandera was the head of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), which collaborated with Nazi Germany during WWII and was involved in the ethnic cleansing of Poles, Jews and Russians. Bandera’s portrait has been used extensively by some Ukrainian nationalists in the current conflict in Ukraine, including on some demonstrations in Kiev.
13:46 GMT:
The self-defense militia in the city of Krasnodon in the Lugansk region has shot down Ukrainian Su-25 strike aircraft, Itar-Tass reported, quoting the press center of the Lugansk People’s Republic.
“The pilot has ejected and is being searched for right now. There will be a video report of the downed airplanes’ posted on the web soon,” the press center said in a statement.
Earlier Sunday a spokesman for the Ukrainian military campaign, Leonid Matyukhin, told Channel 5 television that the militias in the Lugansk region had shot down a Ukrainian Mig-29 fighter jet.
The total losses of the Ukrainian Air Force over the months of the conflict, including those suffered today, are at least 54 aircraft.
12:13 GMT:
Malaysia is looking for a way to prosecute whoever is responsible for the shooting down of flight MH17, the country’s top officials said.
“We will not sit quietly, and we will seek justice for those on MH17," Defense Minister Hishammuddin Hussein told journalists after the opening of the annual congress of his political party, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO).
"It doesn't matter which court we have to go, be it in Malaysia, Ukraine or at the International Court of Justice," The Straits Times newspaper quoted him as saying.
There were 43 Malaysian nationals among the 298 people who died on board MH17, when the plane was shot down over the Donetsk region in Eastern Ukraine on July 17.
11:09 GMT:
Lugansk has come under heavy shelling overnight, with widespread damage and fires reported, the city council said in a statement on its website.
“The residents of Lugansk say the city has come under fire overnight, especially its eastern part. Due to the missiles hitting, there is damage to the buildings, and fires,” the statement says.
The situation remains critical in the city. Essential food is sold on the streets, while the city is without running water, electricity and communications. No supplies of medicines, food or fuel are being delivered. Salaries and pensions aren’t being paid.
10:42 GMT:
Russian and Ukrainian officials have agreed to proceed with the inspection of the first group of 16 Russian trucks of the humanitarian convoy for eastern Ukraine, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said.
The ICRC will be supervising the delivery of the aid and will go ahead after it receives security guarantees from the warring sides in Ukraine. ......................http://rt.com/news/eastern-ukraine-army-operation-680/
17/8/14