Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, whose government blames Russia for the separatist war, put his military on high alert. Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine, sparking the deepest crisis since the Cold War in relations with the U.S. and the European Union. After his arrival in Crimea, Putin approved staff changes that included replacing Russian Education Minister Dmitry Livanov so that he can take over the task of rebuilding economic ties with Ukraine. As efforts to bring peace to eastern Ukraine stall, Putin said plans to resume talks over the cease-fire pact at next month’s Group of 20 summit in China would be pointless. “Ukraine wants more help and Putin wants to leave Donbas but to save face,” Bunin said, referring to the area comprising the war-ravaged districts of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine.

Source: National Post August 19, 2016 16:52 UTC