Ukraine crisis. News in brief. Thursday 2 March. [Ukrainian sources]

THURSDAY

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NEWS:
Trump is ready to assign criticism of Putin's adviser on Russia.  Sweden introduced military conscription through Russia.  Visa lib for Ukraine to be approved by EU Council May 11, to be enforced from June.  Contacts between Trump's campaign and Russia to be investigated by House of Representative committee.  US attorney general disguised last year contacts with Russia's envoy. Feygin on Savchenko's trip to Donbas: "It's a special operation paid by Medvedchuk and agreed with FSB".

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Administration of US President Donald Trump offered a senior adviser on Europe and a senior fellow of Brookings Institution Fiona Hill, known for his criticism of Russian authorities
It is reported by Foreign Policy app .

This appointment should appeal to Congress - both Republicans and Democrats. Hill herself has not commented on the news.

Fiona Hill has dual citizenship - Britain and the US - and worked on Intelligence from 2006 to 2009.

In his biography of President Vladimir Putin, published in 2013, he warned against underestimating the Russian leader, pointing to its "strategic agility" and the ability to find weaknesses in the opponents' honed while working in the KGB. "

In November, in an interview with The Atlantic Hill as anticipated start new US administration relations with Russia: "The Russians will the most rosy expectations - which dissolved almost immediately, so that Russia and the US in reality very little in common."

espreso.tv , Original in Ukrainian / на українській мові

The Swedish Government has decided to turn the mandatory conscription
This was stated by spokesman of the Ministry of Defence of Sweden Radebo Marinetti, reports the BBC .

"Russian military activity - is one reason," - said Radebo.

From 1 January 2018 the service will be called up about 4 thousand boys and girls. They will choose from 13,000 people born in 1999 who offered to undergo psychological and physical tests.

Conscripts serve 9-12 months. The purpose of the call - to motivate young people to become military professionals and fund mobilization reserve.

Sweden was mandatory conscription by 2010. Then called upon just men.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence of Sweden also stated that 70% of MPs support the government's plans to strengthen the armed forces and closer military cooperation with neighboring countries.

The fact that Sweden introduce universal military aggression by the Kremlin , the media wrote in the autumn of 2016.

As previously reported, Russia began an information war against Sweden after the annexation of the Crimea.

Sweden and Finland, where many residents believe the behavior of Russia in the Baltic region unpredictable shall take various measures to strengthen their security.

In early 2016 it became known that Sweden will return its troops to the island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea, where during the Cold War, there were about 20 thousand soldiers.

espreso.tv , Original in Ukrainian / на українській мові

The final approval of a visa-free regime for citizens of Ukraine should take place at a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council May 11, Europeiska Pravda reports citing independent sources from influential EU member states.

The schedule has been informally agreed upon between the European institutions and member states, according to Europeiska Pravda. The Committee of Permanent Representatives of EU member states (COREPER) will formally approve the decision on visa liberalization for Ukraine at a meeting in Brussels on March 2. On February 28, inter-institutional talks between the Council of the European Union, the European Commission and the European Parliament on EU visa liberalization for Ukraine ended successfully. "Visa trialogue for Ukraine has ended successfully.....

unian.info

The U.S. House of Representatives intelligence committee will investigate alleged collusion between Donald Trump's presidential campaign and Russia.

This was announced by top Democrat on the panel Adam Schiff on Wednesday on MSNBC, Censor.NET reports citing Reuters.

"We have reached a written agreement, the minority and the majority in the House intelligence committee, that we will investigate allegations of Russian collusion with the Trump campaign," Schiff said.

Representative Devin Nunes, the Republican chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, said on Monday U.S. intelligence officials had not yet presented the panel with evidence of contacts between Trump campaign staff and Russian intelligence. On Wednesday, Nunes told Fox News that the committee would receive a briefing from intelligence officials on Thursday.

The committee, which has been probing contacts between Trump's campaign and Russia, said in a statement that Nunes and Schiff had agreed on a classified six-page document laying out the scope of their investigation.

It said one question they would seek to answer was whether the Russian actions included "links between Russia and individuals associated with political campaigns or any other U.S. Persons." The statement did not refer specifically to the Trump campaign.

Last year U.S. intelligence analysts have concluded that Russia tried to help Trump win the White House by discrediting Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and her party through cyber attacks. President Barack Obama, a Democrat, expelled Russian diplomats in retaliation in December.

Trump has denied any of his associates had contacts with Moscow before last year's election and dismissed the controversy as a "scam" perpetrated by a hostile news media.

Moscow has denied the accusations.

ua.censor.net.ua, Original in Ukrainian / на українській мові

U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who also oversees the Justice Department and the FBI, did not disclose his last year encounters with Russian Ambassador to the U.S. Sergey Kislyak during his confirmation hearing.

As reported by Censor.NET referring to The Washington Post citing Justice Department officials.

Then Republican Senator Jeff Sessions spoke twice last year with Russia's Ambassador to the United States Sergey Kislyak. One of the meetings took place in September, at the height of what U.S. intelligence officials say was a Russian cyber campaign to upend the U.S. presidential race.

The fact caused an outcry after Sessions said he had not had any contacts with Russia's representatives during the 2017 U.S. presidential campaign, speaking at his confirmation hearing to become attorney general.

As attorney general, Sessions oversees the Justice Department and the FBI, which have been leading investigations into Russian meddling and any links to Trump's associates.

"It is now clearer than ever that the attorney general cannot, in good faith, oversee an investigation at the Department of Justice and the FBI of the Trump-Russia connection, and he must recuse himself immediately," Democratic Senator Al Franken told The Washington Post.

Another Democratic Senator Ron Wyden, a senior member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said on Twitter late Wednesday that "we need a special counsel to investigate Trump associates' ties to Russia."

As reported by AP, in a statement later on March 1, Sessions said: "I never met with any Russian officials to discuss issues of the campaign. I have no idea what this allegation is about. It is false."

The Russian embassy in Washington declined to comment on reports about possible contacts between Sessions and Kislyak, according to Interfax.

Last month, Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn resigned after it emerged he had discussed Russian sanctions in a phone conversation with the Russian ambassador in Washington.

censor.net.ua, Original in Russian / На русском

Trips of independent people's deputy Nadiia Savchenko to the occupied Donbas could be Viktor Medvedchuk's special operation prepared in coordination with the Russian authorities.

Savchenko's former lawyer Mark Feygin said in an interview with Ukrinform, Censor.NET reports.

"In my opinion, this is a special operation paid by Medvedchuk and agreed with the Lubianka [the FSB]. Such a visit of Savchenko could not be sanctioned only by Surkov [a Putin's aide]," he said.

"Alas, Nadiia Savchenko has once again proved to be a narrow-minded person. This is sad. What we have now is something I predicted earlier. She fell under the influence of people whose interests are not limited to Ukraine and is being actively used by them for some tactical purposes. We have a spike in violence around Avdiivka, new corpses each day, difficulties surrounding the blockade, and she goes to occupied territory. This is wrong," the lawyer said.

"I can't say how deeply Nadiia is involved in all this, but her sister Vira is involved rather deeply. And she has access to Medvedchuk. And Ruban is also a Medvedchuk's man. I am sure all this is detrimental to the cause of the liberation of prisoners," he added.

A video of Savchenko visiting Ukrainian prisoners in the occupied Donbas was uploaded on YouTube on Feb. 24.

Earlier, militants of the so-called "Donetsk People's Republic" aka "DPR" said head of the Ukrainian Center for Prisoners Release Volodymyr Ruban and independent member of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Nadiia Savchenko arrived in the occupied area of the Donetsk region "to visit Ukrainian POWs."

The Security Service of Ukraine interviewed Ruban over the fact of violation of the demarcation line crossing order and canceled his permit. Ruban called the decision a "revenge for Savchenko."

ua.censor.net.ua , Original in Ukrainian / на українській мові

MEP, candidate for the French presidency, the leader of the ultra-right Russian party "National Front" Marine Le Pen decision of the European Parliament has been deprived of parliamentary immunity.

It is reported by the Russian news agency "Interfax".

This decision was taken at the plenary session of the European Parliament on 2 March.

The request for the removal of immunity of Le Pen was filed Prosecutor French city of Nanterre.

France opened the investigation after the December 2015 Chairman of the ultra-right party "National Front" published in the Twitter-account several pictures murder of hostages by militants of the terrorist group "Islamic state". Le Pen accused of "distributing images of violence."

As reported, "Apostrophe" earlier during mass protests against Le Pen in Nantes injured more than a dozen police officers.

apostrophe.ua , Original in Ukrainian / на українській мові

As a result of the collapse of the tunnel, which was built at Kaluga highway in Moscow killed one person.

It is reported by the Russian edition Lenta.ru.



It is noted that the collapse happened in the area of ​​40 sq.m. 23 kilometer Kaluga highway.

At the time of the collapse in the tunnel construction work carried out on the site were people.

Most people were able to get out of the rubble of their own, when it turned pereklychtsi disappearance of one worker.

Under the rubble may be three or four. In place of NP are emergency services.

Collapse pouring concrete height of 60 centimeters happened 500 meters from the mouth of the tunnel.

As reported, "Apostrophe" before experts voiced a list of bridges threatened with collapse in Kiev.

apostrophe.ua/ua, Original in Ukrainian / на українській мові

A company controlled by billionaire Rinat Akhmetov, Ukraine's richest man, said on March 2 that the seizure of some of its assets by Russia-backed separatists in the eastern part of the country is "unacceptable."

The March 1 move to seize dozens of coal mines and other enterprises, including a telecoms firm and a humanitarian organization funded by Akhmetov, followed an announcement by the separatists that they would take control of companies located on territory they hold in response to a road and rail blockade imposed more than a month ago by nationalist Ukrainian lawmakers and veterans of the ongoing war in the east.

The separatists want Ukrainian companies operating on their territory to register and pay taxes locally instead of to the government in Kyiv.

"We believe that private property is sovereign, and the demands of re-registration of our companies and payment of taxes to self-proclaimed DNR and LNR are unacceptable," Akhmetov's SCM Group said in a statement referring to the separatist-controlled areas of Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk regions..........

rferl.org

US Attorney General took the rejection in the trial of Staff Trump Russia

Attorney General and Minister of Justice Jeff Sessions said, which talked with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak in Washington. He said this during a press conference.

According to him, they zdzvonylysya advance and agreed to a meeting, which was also attended by members of the office Sessions.

"We talked a little about the problem of terrorism, as I recall, and suddenly there was a topic of Ukraine - Ukrainian Ambassador eve was in my office. It (Sour) said that Russia has done nothing wrong " , - said Sessions.

He also mentioned that he spoke yogurt on his trip to Russia in 1991.

In addition, according to Sessions, the Russian ambassador invited him to lunch, but the Attorney General refused.

During the press conference, US Attorney General took the rejection in the investigation Trump relations with Russia.

Recall, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General Jeff Sessions took the rejection of an investigation of possible intervention in the US election campaign.

glavcom.ua , Original in Ukrainian / на українській мові

Under the agreement, $ 150 million should go for training, equipment, lethal weapon defense implications, logistics and intelligence

In prepared by the Committee on Appropriations House of Representatives draft defense budget is proposed to allocate Ukraine 150 million dollars to support its armed forces. This is evidenced by published the draft text.

Under the agreement, the money should go to education, equipment, lethal weapon defense implications, logistics and intelligence.

However, the draft states that the allocated funds can not be spent on the purchase or transfer of Ukraine portable anti-aircraft missile systems.

This bill should be considered US House of Representatives, and then it must be approved by the President.

glavcom.ua, Original in Ukrainian / на українській мові

EU ambassadors on March 2, 2017, decided to extend sanctions against fugitive ex-president of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych and his allies for another 12 months.

"The decision was taken against 15 individuals," the Council of the EU told UNIAN's correspondent in Brussels following a meeting on Thursday. The decision should be endorsed by the Council of the EU and published in the Official Journal of the European Union on Saturday, March 4. As was reported, the EU on March 6, 2014, froze assets of former Ukrainian officials in office during Yanukovych's presidency for misuse of public funds and human rights violations. The sanctions were last extended a year ago.

On the sanction list are Yanukovych, ex-prime minister Mykola Azarov, former interior minister Vitaliy Zakharchenko, former prosecutor general Viktor Pshonka and his son Artem Pshonka, former justice minister Olena Lukash, former head of the presidential administration Andriy Kliuyev and his brother, former MP Serhiy Kliuyev. Subject to the EU sanctions are also former deputy interior minister Viktor Ratushniak, former first vice prime minister Serhiy Arbuzov, former tax minister Oleksandr Klymenko, former energy minister Eduard Stavytsky, former education minister Dmytro Tabachnyk, and energy tycoon Serhiy Kurchenko. Former MP Yuriy Ivanyushchenko was removed from the sanctions list..........

unian.info/politics