Both sides in conflict intensify their threats

Associated Press

DONETSK, Ukraine

As top Ukrainians spoke of imminent invasion and the West threatened the Kremlin with more sanctions, Moscow said Friday that pro-Russian separatists would not lay down their arms in eastern Ukraine until activists relinquish control over key sites in Kiev.

The tough talk came as tensions heightened on the ground, with Russian fighter jets reported crossing into Ukrainian airspace and a team of unarmed foreign military observers detained by pro-Russian forces in Slovyansk, the heart of the separatist movement.

Both sides exchanged threats and warnings Friday.

“The world has not yet forgotten World War II, but Russia is already keen on starting World War III,” Ukraine’s acting prime minister, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, told members of his Cabinet.

Accusing the West of plotting to control Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said pro-Russia insurgents in the country’s east would disarm and leave the territory they have occupied only if the Ukrainian government clears out a protest camp in Kiev’s Independence Square.

Meanwhile, the U.S. and other nations in the Group of Seven said late Friday they have will “move swiftly” to impose more economic sanctions on Russia in response to its actions in Ukraine.