Russia, Ukraine approaching ‘serious conflict’ - foreign affairs chief

MOSCOW, June 17 (Itar-Tass) - Relations between Russia and Ukraine have entered a new stage and are “moving closer to serious conflict”, said State Duma lower house Foreign Affairs committee chief Aleksei Pushkov. “An attack on the Russian embassy, an attempted attack on the consulate-general in Odessa, insults to the Russian president, regular arrests of Russian journalists, which never cease, and refusal to pay for gas - and I think this is a deliberate decision co-ordinated with the United States - all these are links of one chain,” Pushkov told deputies on Tuesday. Russia did not recognise unilateral border demarcation by Ukraine, which was “contrary to all norms of international law”, he said, calling for a joint commission and noting that a one-sided decision would lead to constant conflicts. Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council on Monday authorised the government to carry out unilateral demarcation of the frontier, Security Council Secretary Andrei Parubiy told journalists after a council meeting chaired by Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko. The move reflected "today's threats to national security", Parubiy said. Learn more on itar-tass.com