-- The UN General Assembly has passed a resolution that affirms Ukraine's territorial integrity.
-- The IMF has announced "a staff-level agreement" with Kyiv on assistance of $14 billion-$18 billion in conjunction with a reform program that will "unlock" up to $27 billion over the next two years, pending final approval next month. Tthe U.S. Congress has also passed an aid bill for Ukraine.
-- Ex-PM Yulia Tymoshenko has announced plans to run for president.
-- Members of the Right Sector have been holding a demonstration outside the Ukrainian parliament building to vent their anger at the killing of prominent member Oleksander Muzychkoearlier in the week.
-- Six Ukrainian military officers detained by pro-Russian troops in Crimea have been released, including Colonel Yuliy Mamchur, but five others are still being held captive.
-- Anonymous sources quoted by CNN say U.S. intelligence "concludes it is more likely than previously thought that Russian forces will enter eastern Ukraine."
-- U.S. President Barack Obama, in the keynote speech of his visit to Europe, chided Russia for its use of "brute force" in Ukraine and vowed that a determined alliance of the United States and Europe will prevail over time.
*NOTE: Times are stated according to local time in Kyiv
Serhiy Hayduk was named the Ukrainian Navy's commander in chief after Denis Berezovsky defected to the Russian side early this month. Now he appears to have been abducted in Sevastopol after the raid on navy headquarters by pro-Russians.
Self-defense guys say that Ukrainian Navy chief Sergei Haiduk tried to hide but was captured and taken away by Russian secret services.
The Russian foreign ministry accuses the West of violating the 1994 Budapest Memorandum by helping Euromaidan stage a "coup."
"The U.S. and the EU actively fomented a coup in Kyiv, acting against Ukraine's political independence and sovereignty."
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Putin wants the future bridge linking Russia to Crimea over the Kerch straight to carry both road and rail traffic.
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The new sign on the Crimean assembly building reads: "State Council of the Crimean Republic."
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From our news desk:
Russia has accused Western states of violating a pledge to respect Ukraine's sovereignty under a 1994 security agreement. In a commentary published on its website, the Foreign Ministry said that by "pandering" to a "state coup" in Kyiv, Western nations had violated the Budapest Memorandum. Under that agreement, the United States, Britain, and Russia guaranteed Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity in exchange for Ukraine's commitment to give up its nuclear arsenal after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
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U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is currently meeting with the presidents of Lithuania and Latvia to reassure them in the wake of Russia's occupation and "attempted annexation" of Crimea. The visit is part of a two-day regional trip for Biden to meet with Polish officials and the leaders of the three Baltic states. Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite called Biden's trip "symbolic" and told him at the start of her meeting in Vilnius's old town that Russia's actions in Ukraine are "alarming." Biden was to meet separately with Latvian President Andris Berzins. The three will then hold a joint meeting.
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"Live in comfort." This banner truly captures the mood in Sevastopol.
