Free Republic

Russian President Vladimir Putin is showing telltale signs that he intends to extend his control over Ukraine and perhaps elsewhere in Eastern Europe, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Mike Rogers said Sunday. Beyond assembling military armor and tens of thousands of troops along the Russia-Ukraine border, Putin is moving troops in northern Georgia and planting intelligence officers in Ukraine, the Michigan Republican told “Fox News Sunday.” He said Russian troops in the northern region of Georgia, known as South Ossetia, are on the move, perhaps to go into Armenia or toward the Baltic Sea. “There’s no way I’d take this...

MOSCOW — A day after Russian President Vladimir Putin surprised President Obama with a phone call to discuss a diplomatic solution to the standoff over Ukraine, there are signs that a deal might be on the horizon. Both sides publicly laid out positions, though they remain far apart on some issues. “We are bringing our approaches closer together,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in a Russian television interview. He added that “a possible joint initiative that could be offered to our Ukrainian partners is taking shape.”

Hours before meeting his U.S. counterpart on Sunday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov called on Western powers to back a proposal for a "federal" structure in Ukraine. "If our Western partners are prepared, Russia, the U.S. and the EU will be able to set up a group of support to Ukraine and to formulate general appeals to those who rule in Ukraine now," Lavrov told Russian state television, according to state news agency ITAR-Tass. This would lead to talks between "all political forces without exception, naturally not armed radicals" and would result in a new constitution allowing for a "federal...

The West is inconsistent in not recognizing the Crimea referendum as legitimate, while recognizing the military coup in Kiev, Russian FM Sergey Lavrov said. He accused the EU and US of duplicity and described sanctions as a “dead-end track.” -snip- First and foremost, order has to be restored in all cities, all illegal weapons must be surrendered, all buildings that have been taken over illegally must be released, all barriers from streets and squares must be removed, and there must be no more “Maidans” or “mini-Maidans.” -snip- We are convinced that it would be impossible to work out solutions to...