<div class="cnn_strycntntlft"><a name="em0"/>
(CNN) -- NATO's top military commander expressed concern Sunday about the buildup of Russian forces on Ukraine's border, as Moscow's forces consolidated their control of Crimea over the weekend.
Supreme Allied Commander Europe Gen. Philip Breedlove said Russia had a large force on Ukraine's eastern border and that he was worried it could pose a threat to Moldova's separatist Trans-Dniester region.
"The (Russian) force that is at the Ukrainian border now to the east is very, very sizable and very, very ready," Breedlove, a U.S. Air Force general, said.
"There is absolutely sufficient force postured on the eastern border of Ukraine to run to Trans-Dniester if the decision was made to do that, and that is very worrisome."
<a name="em1"/><div id="expand15" class="cnnGalleryContainer cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnnStoryElementBox"><div id="expandableTarget15" class="cnnArticleExpandableTarget">
<div>
Pro-Russian militia members evacuate a local resident as Russian troops assault the Belbek air base, outside Sevastopol, Crimea, on Saturday, March 22. On Saturday, six Russian special forces armored personnel carriers broke through the gates of the air base, firing warning shots into the air, a spokesman for Ukraine's Ministry of Defense in Crimea told CNN. Russia's military activities in Crimea and its move to annex the region have been condemned by Ukraine's interim government in Kiev, the European Union and the United States. The standoff has sparked an international crisis, reviving concerns of a return to Cold War relations.
Soldiers in unmarked uniforms sit atop an armored personnel carrier at the gate of the Belbek air base on March 22.
A Russian sailor holds the Russian Navy's St. Andrew's flag while standing on the bow of the surrendered Ukrainian submarine Zaporozhye, in Sevastopol, Crimea, on Saturday, March 22.
Russian President Vladimir Putin signs the final decree completing the annexation of Crimea in Moscow on Friday, March 21, as Upper House Speaker Valentina Matviyenko, left, and State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin, right, watch.
A Ukrainian serviceman leaves a Ukrainian military unit, which Russian soldiers took control of, in the Crimean city of Perevalnoye on March 21.
Ukrainian border guards run during training at a military camp in Alekseyevka, Ukraine, on March 21.
Russian soldiers patrol the area surrounding a Ukrainian military unit in Perevalnoye on Thursday, March 20.
Pro-Russian protesters remove the gate to the Ukrainian navy headquarters as Russian troops stand guard in Sevastopol, Crimea, on Wednesday, March 19.
Members of pro-Russian forces, or Crimean "self-defense" forces, walk inside Ukrainian navy headquarters in Sevastopol on March 19. Crimean lawmakers have said they now see Ukrainian soldiers as an occupying force and have given them a certain amount of time to leave.
A member of pro-Russian forces takes down a Ukrainian flag at Ukrainian naval headquarters in Sevastopol on March 19.
Chief of the Russian Black Sea Fleet Alexander Vitko leaves the Ukrainian navy headquarters in Sevastopol after pro-Russian forces took it over on March 19.
A Russian flag waves as workers install a new sign on a local parliament building in Simferopol, Crimea's capital, on March 19.
Russian military personnel surround a Ukrainian military base in Perevalnoe, Crimea, on March 19. Ukrainian troops have been encircled by pro-Russian forces in their bases for days.
Nameplates on the front of the Crimean parliament building get removed Tuesday, March 18, in Simferopol after a controversial referendum to break away from Ukraine and join Russia.
From left, Crimean Prime Minister Sergey Aksyonov; Vladimir Konstantinov, speaker of the Crimean parliament; Russian President Vladimir Putin; and Alexei Chaly, the new de facto mayor of Sevastopol, join hands in Moscow on March 18 after signing a treaty to make the Black Sea peninsula part of Russia.
Demonstrators hold a Crimean flag at Lenin Square in Simferopol on March 18.
Ukrainian soldiers stand guard at a checkpoint near Strilkove, Ukraine, close to Crimea on Monday, March 17.
Former boxer and Ukrainian politician Vitali Klitschko addresses reporters in Kiev on March 17.
Ukrainian troops stand guard in front of the Ukrainian Parliament building in Kiev on March 17. Ukraine's interim government insists it won't accept the annexation of Crimea by Russia, and the interim Ukrainian president announced a partial mobilization of his country's armed forces.
A Ukrainian man applies for the National Guard at a mobile recruitment center in Kiev on March 17.
Civilians walk past riot police in Simferopol on March 17.
A Ukrainian soldier stands on top of an armored vehicle at a military camp near the village of Michurino, Ukraine, on March 17.
Policemen stand guard outside the regional state administration building in Donetsk, Ukraine, during a rally by pro-Russia activists March 17.
Armed soldiers stand guard outside a Ukrainian military base in Perevalne, a village in Crimea, on March 17.
A man holds a Crimean flag as he stands in front of the Crimean parliament building in Simferopol on March 17.
Crimeans holding Russian flags celebrate in front of the parliament building in Simferopol on Sunday, March 16.
A Ukrainian police officer tries to shield himself from a road block thrown by pro-Russia supporters in Kharkiv, Ukraine, on March 16.
Pro-Russia demonstrators storm the prosecutor general's office during a rally in Donetsk on March 16.
A child casts her mother's ballot March 16 while holding a Russian flag at a polling station in Simferopol.
A pro-Russian soldier, with the Russian flag behind him, mans a machine gun outside an Ukrainian military base in Perevalne on Saturday, March 15.
A pro-Russian soldier guards the perimeter outside an Ukrainian military base in Perevalne on March 15.
Russian flags wave in front of a monument dedicated to Soviet Union founder Vladimir Lenin during a pro-Russia rally in Simferopol's Lenin Square on March 15.
Evgenyi Batyukhov cries March 14 at the site where pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian activists clashed the night before in Donetsk, Ukraine.
A line of policemen stand in front of a bus of pro-Ukrainian activists as pro-Russian supporters confront them during a rally in Donetsk on Thursday, March 13.
Pro-Russian supporters clash with pro-Ukrainian activists in Donetsk on March 13.
<div><div class="cnnArticleGalleryPhotoContainer">
- NEW: NATO commander says Russia has a large force on Ukraine's eastern border
- NEW: "Russia is acting much more like an adversary than a partner," NATO commander says
- "We must not allow a new division of Europe," says German foreign minister
- Pro-Russia rallies planned in southern, eastern Ukraine
(CNN) -- NATO's top military commander expressed concern Sunday about the buildup of Russian forces on Ukraine's border, as Moscow's forces consolidated their control of Crimea over the weekend.
Supreme Allied Commander Europe Gen. Philip Breedlove said Russia had a large force on Ukraine's eastern border and that he was worried it could pose a threat to Moldova's separatist Trans-Dniester region.
"The (Russian) force that is at the Ukrainian border now to the east is very, very sizable and very, very ready," Breedlove, a U.S. Air Force general, said.
"There is absolutely sufficient force postured on the eastern border of Ukraine to run to Trans-Dniester if the decision was made to do that, and that is very worrisome."
<a name="em1"/><div id="expand15" class="cnnGalleryContainer cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnnStoryElementBox"><div id="expandableTarget15" class="cnnArticleExpandableTarget">
<div>
<div><div class="cnnArticleGalleryPhotoContainer">
via Smart Health Shop Forum http://ift.tt/1gNQhS7
No comments:
Post a Comment