By PETER LEONARD and LAURA MILLS
Source: Yahoo News
MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President
Vladimir Putin threatened Wednesday to start charging Ukraine in advance
for vital natural gas supplies — a move that could sharply hurt his
neighbor, which is already on the verge of bankruptcy.
It was just the
latest way Moscow is putting pressure on Ukraine since its pro-Russian
president Viktor Yanukovych was ousted from power in February after
months of street protests.
Meanwhile,
NATO's top military commander in Europe told The Associated Press that
countermoves to the Russian military threat against Ukraine could
include sending American troops to alliance nations in Eastern Europe
feeling at risk.
U.S. Air
Force Gen. Philip Breedlove told the Associated Press on Wednesday that
he wouldn't "write off involvement by any nation, to include the United
States."
"Essentially what we
are looking at is a package of land, air and maritime measures that
would build assurance for our easternmost allies," he said.
Putin,
who was chairing a meeting with government ministers in his suburban
residence outside Moscow, Putin said asking for advance gas payments
"corresponded with the contract" between Ukraine and Russia. Still, he
suggested that the state energy giant Gazprom to refrain from such
drastic measures until "additional consultations" between both sides.
Russia has already eliminated a
gas discount it had given Ukraine, arguing that it was tied to a lease
for Russia's Black Sea Fleet base in Crimea, a Ukrainian region that
Russia annexed last month. And Ukraine has promised the International
Monetary Fund that it will cut energy subsidies to residents in exchange
for a bailout loan of up to $14 billion — so gas prices were set to
rise 50 percent on May 1 even before the latest salvo from Putin.
Speaking
in Kiev earlier, Ukrainian Energy Minister Yuri Prodan said Ukraine
will pay for March deliveries of gas from Russia only after it reaches
an agreement on the price. He rejected the new, much higher price that
Gazprom announced earlier and said Ukraine has not pumped in any gas
from Russia so far this month.
Authorities
in Kiev also warned Wednesday they are prepared to use force to clear
several government buildings seized by pro-Russian separatists in the
east of the country.
Interior
Minister Arsen Avakov said the standoff in Luhansk and the two
neighboring Russian-leaning regions of Donetsk and Kharkiv must be
resolved within the next two days.
"I
want to repeat that there are two options: political settlement through
negotiations and the use of force," Avakov told reporters. "We are
ready for both options."
As he spoke, anti-government
protesters in Luhansk erected high barricades along a thoroughfare
running in front of the security service premises.
All
the cities affected by the uprisings are in Ukraine's industrial
Russian-speaking heartland in the east, which has a large population of
ethnic Russians and where economic and cultural ties to Russia are
strong. Many residents are suspicious of government that took power in
February.
In a sign of the
public relations battle going on between the two nations, some Russian
media — including state-run RIA Novosti — switched their description of
those occupying the buildings from pro-Russian protesters to "supporters
of federalization."
Protesters
continued to occupy the headquarters of Ukraine's Security Service in
the eastern city of Luhansk, with hundreds of supporters camped outside
and shouting "Putin! Putin!" overnight.
The
security agency had said the separatists inside the building, armed
with explosives and other weapons, were threatening hostages inside. The
hostages — 56 in all —were allowed to leave the building overnight, it
said. Local police disputed that claim, however, saying there had been
no hostages.
Serhiy Tyhipko, a Ukrainian
lawmaker associated with Yanukovych's ousted government, urged the new
authorities in Kiev not to storm the building in Luhansk but rather
negotiate a peaceful resolution. He said the protesters wanted Ukraine
to turn into a federal state with broad regional autonomy, not for their
region to secede.
But
turning Ukraine into a federation is Russia's key demand — one
Ukraine's new government has refused to discuss, calling it a precursor
to a breakup.
In the eastern
Ukrainian city of Donetsk, where protesters were still occupying another
government building, regional governor Serhiy Taruta met with key
activists to try to find a solution to the crisis.
The
Donetsk activists sounded optimistic after the talks, with leading
figure Denis Bulishin hailing the opportunity for dialogue but stopping
short of talking about any tangible results.
Ukraine's government and the U.S.
have accused Moscow of fomenting the unrest as a pretext for another
Russian military incursion similar to last month's takeover of Crimea.
Up to 40,000 Russian troops are massed along the Ukrainian border,
according to NATO.
The Russian
Foreign Ministry hit back at the West on Wednesday, calling for the
U.S. to stop using international organizations as a means of
"exacerbating tensions surrounding Ukraine."
"The
daily activity of Russian troops on national territory does not
threaten the security of the U.S. or other member states of the OSCE,"
it said. "Attempts to accuse Russia of a buildup of troops are
unfounded."
Polish Prime
Minister Donald Tusk on Wednesday called on Moscow to ease tensions,
saying it's "beyond any doubt, that the country that has contributed to
this conflict — Russia — is responsible for the de-escalation."
___
John-Thor
Dahlburg in Paris, Maria Danilova in Kiev, Laura Mills in Moscow and
Monika Scislowska in Warsaw, Poland, contributed to this report.
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