Members of Nato will supply arms to Kiev in its battle with separatist rebels, Ukraine's president Petro Poroshenko has said, while claiming the conflict cannot be ended militarily because Russia will always step in to save the insurgents from defeat.
As Mr Poroshenko gave a pep talk to forces defending the strategic port city of Mariupol from Moscow-backed militants, the European Union was again labouring over a plan to tighten sanctions on Russia.
Ambassadors from all 28 EU states were meeting last night to discuss implementation of measures against Russian companies, politicians and businessmen that were agreed in principle last Friday.
Peace process
Diplomats said some states wanted more clarity on how the sanctions could be suspended if a peace process took hold in eastern Ukraine, while others questioned whether they should be imposed at all now a ceasefire of sorts was in place.
As the ambassadors met, the Kremlin ramped up the pressure on the EU to soften its position by saying Russian president Vladimir Putin and Mr Poroshenko had spoken on the telephone about "steps to facilitate a peaceful resolution of the situation in southeast Ukraine" and would continue dialogue.
Sanctions criticised
Several EU members – most publicly the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia – have criticised the sanctions against Russia, saying they will damage Europe's economy and only hamper efforts to resolve the bloody crisis in Ukraine.
Prague has questioned the presence of Russia’s military in eastern Ukraine, despite Nato’s provision of extensive satellite imagery, the capture of some Russian soldiers and the killing and wounding of others in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
Russian prime minister Dmitry Medvedev said yesterday that the "stupid" EU and US sanctions were "wide of the mark, as the vast majority of political leaders recognise".
He suggested that Moscow might ban western airlines from flying over Russia in response to new sanctions, having earlier barred many EU and US food imports. "If there are sanctions related to the energy sector, or further restrictions on Russia's financial sector, we will have to respond asymmetrically," he told Russia's Vedomosti newspaper.
Noting that airlines from “friendly countries” were allowed to fly over Russia, he warned: “If western carriers have to bypass our airspace, this could drive many struggling airlines into bankruptcy. This is not the way to go. We just hope our partners realise this at some point.”
At least one person has been killed and four people injured in shelling since envoys from Ukraine, Russia, the rebels and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) signed a ceasefire deal in Minsk on Friday.
Fragile ceasefire
“I believe our diplomats’ efforts will prove successful” in resolving the conflict, Mr Poroshenko said in Mariupol, while urging members of the national guard stationed there to remain vigilant during the fragile ceasefire.
“It shouldn’t make us relax. We know well our enemy and the value of his words. I have no illusions about our opponent, but there is hope.”
Mr Poroshenko said it was “impossible to win the conflict just by military means . . . The more we increase the pressure, the more Russian troops are on our territory.
“Withdraw foreign troops and close the border and within a week we [will] find a compromise . . . I think the peace initiative is bringing us to this result,” he added.
A day after the US, Poland, Italy and Norway denied planning to supply Ukraine with arms, Mr Poroshenko said "several Nato countries" had agreed to "the direct provision of modern weapons, which will help us defend ourselves and triumph.
“Though we count only on ourselves, financial and technical military help are vital. And we will get it.”