Ukraine Crisis: Diplomats Meet, Putin Admits Russia's Role In Crimea
As Secretary of State John Kerry and foreign ministers from Ukraine, Russia and the European Union were gathering Thursday in Geneva to see if they can find a diplomatic solution to the crisis in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin was publicly acknowledging for the first time that his military played a part in Crimea's breakaway from the rest of Ukraine.
Putin, who in the past had insisted Russian forces did not enter Crimea before people in that region voted last month to join the Russian Federation, said Thursday on Russian national TV that "Crimean self-defense forces were of course backed by Russian servicemen," Russia's RT.com reports.
RT.com writes that Putin "acknowledged that Russian troops were present in Crimea before the referendum and argued that was necessary to let Crimeans make the choice on the future of the region."
Also Thursday, "Putin accused Ukraine's leaders ... of committing a 'grave crime' by using the army to quell unrest in the east of the country, and did not rule out sending in Russian troops," Reuters reports. But, the wire service adds:
"Putin tempered withering criticism of the Ukrainian leadership with more conciliatory comments about the possibility of a compromise to resolve the worst East-West crisis since the Cold War.
"While recalling that parliament had granted him the right to use military force in Ukraine, the Kremlin chief said: 'I really hope that I do not have to exercise this right and that we are able to solve all today's pressing issues via political and diplomatic means.' "