Washington'€™s decision to provide financial aid to the coup-appointed government of Ukraine goes against the US laws, Russia'€™s Foreign Ministry said, urging American politicians to think about the consequences of supporting the radicals in Kiev. Ukraine’s ousted president, Viktor Yanukovich, said on Tuesday that the US plans to loan $1 billion to the country’s new authorities are illega [...]

Washington threatens further action against Russia if Vladimir Putin uses poll to legitimise military occupation, says Kiev envoy. America's ambassador in Kiev said the US would refuse to recognise next Sunday's "so-called referendum" in Crimea, and said Washington would take further steps against Russia if it used the poll to legitimise its occupation. [...]

The coup-imposed government in Kiev is seeking foreign aid from the US, the EU and the IMF to address its budget shortage. The east remains defiant of the new authorities, while Russia reserves the right to deploy troops in order to prevent bloodshed. Nearly 15,000 people in the Russian city of Perm in the Urals have gathered for a demonstration to support Russian speakers in the autonomous republ [...]

Panama's government has put into operation the country's first solar plant at a cost of approximately $10 million, authorities said. The 2.4 MW plant, inaugurated Thursday by President Ricardo Martinelli at the Sarigua National Park in central Panama, was built with the support of the Italian government and Rome-based Enel Green Power... [...]

Is Russia bluffing, or is the world as we know it about to change for ever? On Tuesday Reuters reported that a Kremlin aid Sergei Glazyev had announced that if the U.S. were to impose sanctions on Russia Moscow may drop the dollar as a reserve currency... [...]

The Russian Foreign Ministry has accused the US State Department of double standards and low-level propaganda after it published a list of President Vladimir Putin'€™s "€œfalse claims" about the events in Ukraine. [...]

This leaked phone conversation between EU foreign policy chief Cathy Ashton and Estonia's foreign minister Urmas Paet reveals that the snipers in Ukraine that fired on protesters were actually from the new coalition government, and Western diplomats... [...]

Seumas Milne: The external struggle to dominate Ukraine has put fascists in power and brought the country to the brink of conflict. Diplomatic pronouncements are renowned for hypocrisy and double standards. But western denunciations of Russian intervention in Crimea have reached new depths of self parody. [...]

According to an early March poll the Russian President's rating remains at its highest in the last two years and researchers list the Sochi Olympics and moves for a political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis as possible reasons. [...]

The self-proclaimed government in Kiev is reportedly planning to cut pensions by 50 percent as part of unprecedented austerity measures to save Ukraine from default. With an "€œempty treasury"€, reduction of payments might take place in March. [...]

The Crimean parliament has voted for the region to join Russia. The decision will only come in force if approved by the Crimeans at a referendum which will be held in 10 days. Crimean MPs voted on Thursday for the region to “to become part of the Russian Federation as its constituent territory,” says the text of the regional parliament’s statement. [...]

Ukrainian and Western refusal to answer Moscow'€™s hard questions explains Russia'€™s tough stance on the crisis in Kiev. Ignoring Russian concerns is a western habit adopted after the Soviet Union’s collapse; when NATO bombed Yugoslavia; during the recognition of Kosovo as an independent state, and the US push to install an anti-missile shield over Europe that can target Russia. [...]

Three of the top presenters scheduled to speak at a technology conference in Texas next week will deliver their remarks remotely due to leak investigations that have left them all unable or unwilling to come to the United States. [...]

Diverting from the typical Western line against "Russia's invasion of Crimea," former Ohio congressman and Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich said it was driven by covert action by the United States. [...]

Ukraine'€™s statement at the UN that "€˜16,000 Russian soldiers had been deployed"€™ across Crimea sparked a MSM feeding frenzy that steadfastly ignored any hard facts that got in their way. Especially unwelcome is the fact that the so-called ‘invasion force’ has been there for 15 years already. [...]

Russia will not go to war with the people of Ukraine, but will use its troops to protect citizens, if radicals with clout in Kiev now try to use violence against Ukrainian civilians, particularly ethnic Russians, Putin told the media. [...]

The snipers who shot at protesters and police in Kiev were allegedly hired by Maidan leaders, according to a leaked phone conversation between the EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton and Estonian foreign affairs minister, which has emerged online. [...]

Russia may also dump the dollar if sanctions move forward. A Kremlin economist, Sergei Glazyev, told RIA Novosti the Russian government may not repay loans owed to the financial cartel if the United States imposes sanctions on the country in response to the Crimea intervention. [...]

Gas Wars: The untold story driving the crisis. The untold story behind the crisis is that this is an energy tug of war being fought between Russia and the west, with Ukraine caught in the middle. [...]

Thousands gathered in the Russian cities of Novocherkassk, Bryansk, and Belgorod to support the Russian-speaking population in Ukraine. "We don'€™t abandon our people," said banners held by those who sympathized with residents of the crisis-torn country. [...]

Call for military assistance to the coup government in Kyiv. On Sunday Republicans mounted attacks against President Obama over what they consider his inappropriate response to the crisis in Ukraine. Rep. Mike Rogers, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, told Fox News Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Russians have “been running circles around us.” [...]

Russian Ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin says ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich has sent a letter to Putin asking him to use military force in Ukraine to restore law and order. [...]