From Bloomie:
Ukraine unleashed an offensive to dislodge militants from cities in the eastern Donetsk region as authorities in the capital Kiev said Russian special forces were identified among the anti-government groups.
From four to 11 militants were killed and two wounded when Ukrainian troops stormed an airfield in Kramatorsk, taking it under control, Russian state television reported…The government in Kiev is taking the battle to the restive east of the country after armed pro-Russian activists occupied administrative buildings in cities including Donetsk, a regional center about 100 kilometers (62 miles) from the Russian border.
…Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said on Facebook that “blood was spilled once again in Ukraine. There’s a sense in the country that a civil war could break out.”
…The U.S. is “admiring” the restraint show by Ukraine, with Russia directly and indirectly supporting the provocations, said Carney, the White House spokesman.
“Ukraine had no option,” Ievgen Vorobiov, analyst at the Warsaw-based Polish Institute of Foreign Affairs, said by phone from Kiev. “The government’s hand was forced into a very uncomfortable decision, even if it fits into the Russian plan. This strike will send Russia a clear signal that the Ukrainian government isn’t ready to pull out of Donetsk and Luhansk.”
…EU ministers meeting in Luxembourg yesterday added four Ukrainians to the list of people being sanctioned, including former deputy Prime Minister Serhiy Arbuzov. EU sanctions now cover 55 Ukrainians and Russians.
…“If Russian troops cross the border — a military incursion or invasion — into eastern or southern Ukraine, that would suddenly be a cause for launching stage three, economic sanctions, or targeted measures,” Martonyi said in an interview today in Brussels.
Can the West allow Putin to take Ukraine one annexation at a time? Maybe. Or maybe it will start channeling military aid on the quiet as Ukrainians begin to fall.
