Putin Accuses Ukraine of Terror as Crimea Tensions Escalate

[WestVirginiaRebel]

Bloomberg:

President Vladimir Putin promised to respond to what he called Kiev’s “terror” tactics in Crimea, raising the stakes as fighting between Ukrainian government forces and Russian-backed rebels intensifies in the country once again.

 

The flare-up derailed plans to rekindle diplomatic talks over the war-ravaged region, with Putin telling reporters Wednesday in Moscow that a proposal to hold peace negotiations on the sidelines of a Group of 20 meeting in China next month is now “pointless.” His secret service earlier accused its counterpart in the neighboring country of having killed two Russian servicemen in two separate incidents during a covert operation on the disputed peninsula. Ukraine’s president called the accusations “cynical.”

 

“We certainly won’t let such things pass by,” Putin said. “We will adopt additional security measures, and they will be very serious additional measures.”

 

The Ukrainian conflict is back in the spotlight at a time when Putin is looking to ease the international isolation that began after he annexed Crimea in a 2014 operation that started during the Sochi Olympics. As he prepares for the G-20 summit, the Russian leader this week had talks with the presidents of Turkey, Iran and India, as well as the U.K. prime minister.

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