April 1 (BBC News Europe) Nato is not seeing a
Russian troop pullout from the border with Ukraine, the military alliance's
chief has said. Anders Fogh Rasmussen again stressed that the best way to solve
the crisis was through "a political dialogue". Nato foreign ministers
are now discussing ways to help Ukraine and also reassure allies in Eastern
Europe. This comes after Russia's takeover last month of Ukraine's Crimea
region. Meanwhile, Moscow warned Kiev against integration with Nato. It is the
first time ministers from the 28-member Nato bloc have convened since the
annexation of Crimea. The alliance has also bolstered air drills to be held
over the Baltic states. On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin told German
Chancellor Angela Merkel he had ordered a partial withdrawal of Russian troops
near the eastern border of Ukraine, according to the German government. Moscow
is believed to have massed tens of thousands of soldiers there in recent days,
causing alarm in Kiev and the West.
Russian energy firm Gazprom is
increasing the price it charges Ukraine for gas from Tuesday. Gazprom's chief
executive Alexei Miller said the price of Russian gas for Ukraine had gone up
to $385.5 (£231) per 1,000 cubic metres in the second quarter of 2014 from the
previous rate of $268.50. Mr Miller added that Ukraine's unpaid gas bills to
Russia stood at $1.7bn.
In other
developments on Tuesday
- Ukraine's parliament ordered security services to disarm all "illegal armed groups", following Monday night's shooting in Kiev that involved a member of the radical Right Sector group
- MPs in Kiev voted to allow to hold joint military exercises with Nato and other nations on Ukrainian soil
- Russia's upper house of parliament voted to pull out of a treaty with Ukraine on the Black Sea Fleet's presence in Crimea
Read more at http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26830336
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