Russia-Ukraine crisis: Kiev declares martial law as world powers condemn the seizure of ships by Putin's forces near Crimea
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Martial law was imposed in Ukraine for 30 days as president Petro Poroshenko warned of the “extremely serious” threat of a Russian land invasion.
The parliament voted in favour of the measure on Monday night in response to the capture of three Ukrainian navy vessels and twenty-three crew members by Russian ships near the Kerch Strait.
Russia’s actions were also condemned at emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council, where US representative Nikki Haley described the incident as an “outrageous violation of sovereign Ukrainian territory.”
The secretary-general of Nato, Jens Stoltenberg, also said there was “no justification” for the seizure of the Ukrainian ships and sailors.
Meanwhile there there violent protests in Kiev and demonstrations outside Russian embassies across the world, including in London, Washington DC and Brussels.
It marked an escalation of tensions that have soared since Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and backed a separatist insurgency in eastern Ukraine.
Ukraine said its vessels were heading to the Sea of Azov in line with international maritime rules, while Russia charged that they had failed to obtain a permission to pass through the Kerch Strait separating Crimea from the Russian mainlan
It is the only passage between the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. It is spanned by a 11.8 mile bridge that Russia completed this year.
While a 2003 treaty designates the Kerch Strait and Sea of Azov as shared territorial waters, Russia has sought to assert greater control over the passage since the annexation of Crimea.
The seizure of the Ukrainian ships followed a tense situation in which the three Ukrainian vessels were manoeuvring near the Kerch Strait for hours shadowed by Russian coast guard boats.
Following the capture of the Ukrainian ships on Sunday, Russia closed the Kerch Strait for sea traffic by positioning a tanker under the bridge spanning it. It reopened the route early Monday.
If you want to read how the situation developed, please read our live coverage below.
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Ukraine's president is demanding Russia immediately release Ukrainian sailors and ships seized in the standoff in the Black Sea.
At a meeting of Ukraine's national security council, Petro Poroshenko said "we demand that they are urgently turned over to the Ukrainian side" and called for a "de-escalation" of the crisis around Crimea.
A Russian blockade of the Sea of Azov is unacceptable and developments there are alarming, German foreign minister Heiko Maas has said on Twitter, urging both sides to de-escalate the conflict.
"Developments in Ukraine are worrying," Mr Maas said.
Dozens of far-right protesters are burning tires outside the Russian consulate in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv to protest the seizure of Ukrainian ships off Crimea.
The protest was organized by the National Corps party, which also called for a demonstration in front of president Petro Poroshenko's office in the capital, Kiev. The group argues Mr Poroshenko is not aggressive enough against Russia. The group is small but can put pressure on the president.
In addition to the Lviv protests, far-right group C14 published photos on Facebook of a car with Russian diplomatic plates on fire in front of the Russian Embassy in Kiev.
The European Union and Nato called for restraint from both sides after the Russian coast guard fired on Ukrainian navy vessels near the Kerch Strait and then seized them. The Ukrainian navy said six of its seamen were wounded.
Russia and Ukraine traded blame over the incident.
Council of Europe issues statement saying free passage of Kirch Strait 'must be respected'.
A statement issued overnight by the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine reads: "Following the decision of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine concerning the implementation of the martial law, Chief of General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has ordered to place the AFU units on full alert."
Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin, told Russian news agencies on Monday the incident was a "dangerous provocation" by Ukraine "which deserves special attention and careful investigation".
Senior officials from Germany, Russia, Ukraine and France are meeting in Berlin and will seek to forge a common solution to renewed tensions between Moscow and Kiev, a German Foreign Ministry spokesman said.
Russia is resisting international calls to release three Ukrainian naval ships that its border patrols had fired on and seized near Crimea at the weekend.
"Today, by chance - it was planned long in advance - political directors are meeting here in Berlin in the Normandy format to discuss the situation in Ukraine and progress in the Minsk process," the ministry spokesman said, with reference to the format under which the four countries meet.
"Of course, this forum will be used to discuss the weekend's events and to find a collective solution," he added.
In other Russia-related news, a senior Russian diplomat has warned a planned US withdrawal from a Cold War-era arms control pact could critically upset stability in Europe.
Deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov said if the US deploys intermediate range missiles in Europe after opting out of the treaty banning their use, it will allow Washington to reach targets deep inside Russia.
Donald Trump declared his intention last month to withdraw from the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty over alleged Russian violations. Moscow has denied breaching the pact and accused Washington of violating it.
Mr Ryabkov warned if the US stations the currently banned missiles in Europe, Russia will have to mount an "efficient response," adding that "no one will benefit from those developments".
Here's a report from AP covering all the latest developments:
Ukraine's president has demanded Russia immediately release Ukrainian sailors and ships seized in a standoff around Crimea that sharply escalated tensions between the two countries and drew international concern. The two neighbors have been locked in a tense tug-of-war since Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea, but the incident late Sunday in which Russian coast guard ships fired on Ukrainian navy vessels near the Kerch Strait directly pitted the two militaries, placing them on the verge of an open conflict. Ukrainian lawmakers were set to consider a presidential request for the introduction of martial law in the country later on Monday. The Ukrainian navy said six of its seamen were wounded when Russian coast guards opened fire on three Ukrainian ships near the Kerch Strait and then seized them. Russia's Federal Security Service that is in charge of the coast guard said that three Ukrainian sailors were lightly injured and given medical assistance. It said the Ukrainian boats were towed to the nearby port of Kerch. An emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council was also called for Monday. The European Union and NATO called for restraint from both sides. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said at a meeting of Ukraine's national security council Monday that "we demand that (the ships and crews) are urgently turned over to the Ukrainian side" and called for a "de-escalation" of the crisis around Crimea. Poroshenko had a phone call Monday with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg to discuss the situation. NATO later said that at Poroshenko's request its ambassadors and Ukraine's envoy will hold emergency talks in Brussels later Monday. NATO said Stoltenberg expressed the U.S.-led military alliance's "full support for Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty, including its full navigational rights in its territorial waters under international law." Russia and Ukraine have traded blame over the incident that further escalated tensions that have soared since Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and backed a separatist insurgency in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine said its vessels were heading to the Sea of Azov in line with international maritime rules, while Russia charged that they had failed to obtain permission to pass through the Kerch Strait separating Crimea from the Russian mainland. The narrow strait is the only passage between the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. It's spanned by a 19-kilometer (11.8-mile) bridge that Russia completed this year.
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