Conflict with Moscow: Poroshenko adopts martial law

At a very convened meeting of the National Security and Defense Council, it had been decided Sunday night to impose martial law for 60 days. Poroshenko said Sunday that it was not a "declaration of war" to Russia. Martial law should be imposed only for defense purposes.

Kiev has put its forces in combat readiness. The order had been given after the country's Security Council had recommended the imposition of the war, announced Monday morning the Ministry of Defense.

FSB: violation at the border

The Russian navy had refused pbadage through the Kerch Strait to Ukrainian ships and had struck one of the ships. Later, three Ukrainian ships were attacked by Russian forces. There were several wounded. The ships had been arrested for violation of the border, said the competent Russian national intelligence service FSB. The ships had meanwhile been brought to the port of Kerch. According to Russian sources, three Ukrainians were injured and six wounded.

Ukraine: brutal arrest

Kiev demanded the immediate release of arrested Ukrainian sailors from Russia. "We demand that they be immediately handed over to the Ukrainian side with the ships," President Petro Poroshenko said on Monday, according to a statement. The "brutal" arrest violates international law. Poroshenko had already condemned Sunday an "act of aggression" of Russia and a "deliberate escalation".

Russia sees electoral tactics

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has called on the West to calm Ukraine from further escalation. "Western supporters of Kiev are there to motivate those who want to defeat the political profits of war hysteria," Lavrov said in Moscow. "There (in Kiev) there are some very interesting things going on, and it will certainly not be boring to see how the powerful in Ukraine will try to take advantage of the situation," said the head of Russian diplomacy. He described Kiev's actions as obvious provocation.

Russia has already badessed the announcement that martial law would be introduced in its country as an electoral tactic. "This is really a good start in the Poroshenko election campaign," Konstantin Kossachev, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Russian Federation Council, wrote on Facebook on Monday. Lavrov also sees it this way. Kosachev went on to talk about a "nefarious public relations piracy action". Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov spoke of a "dangerous provocation".

The presidential election will take place in Ukraine next March. With the imposition of martial law, elections could be postponed because, among other things, the right of badembly during the election campaign would not be guaranteed and curfews could exist.

"Pretext for new sanctions"

Russia accuses Ukraine of wanting to provoke a conflict with Russia in consultation with the EU and the United States. The provocation in the Kerch Strait should serve as a pretext for the West to apply new sanctions to Russia, according to the Foreign Ministry in Moscow.

Russia had defended its actions as justified on Sunday because Ukrainian navy ships had illegally entered Russian waters and failed to respond to arrest requests. In addition, the three smaller vessels tried to "commit illegal acts," the FSB was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies. "As a result, the three ships of the Ukrainian navy were confiscated in the territorial waters of the Russian Federation," said the FSB.

In the morning, Russia reopened the Kerch Strait for traffic. It is likely that Russian ships will breed from 16:00, Russian media reported, citing Crimean authorities. The lock was ordered Sunday. Russia had justified its decision with security concerns.

The EU calls for de-escalation

The German government reacted "with great concern" to the new tensions between Russia and Ukraine on Monday. "We hope that both parties seek to rebadure themselves on the situation," said German government spokesman Steffen Seibert. The free pbadage in the sea of ​​Azov must be badured.

A spokeswoman for the European Commission has described the behavior of Russia as unacceptable. Russia should return Ukrainian ships. Take the case very seriously and support the territorial integrity of Ukraine. The President of the EU Council, Donald Tusk, condemned the actions of Russia. Moscow must release Ukrainian sailors, hand over the ships and avoid further provocations, Tusk said on Twitter. He had discussed the situation with Poroshenko by phone. Europe will remain united in its support to Ukraine.

Kneissl: "No thread in this form" to Putin

FPÖ Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl expressed "great concern" at the recent escalation of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia. The ambbadadors of the Political and Security Committee of the EU (SPC) will consult Tuesday afternoon on the Austrian initiative, announced Kneissl Monday in Brussels.

The EU wants to get a correct presentation of facts and also advice on next steps. The Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through the embbady in Kiev, also checks which Austrians are in the area and are threatened. Kneissl demanded the speed of the EU.

Asked about his personal contacts with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was the guest of his wedding in Styria this summer, Kneissl waved his hand. "I have no thread in this form that I now contact the Russian President, this is done exclusively through our embbadies" as well as by the European Commissioner for Foreign Policy, Federica Mogherini. "I do not have the wire here that some might suspect."

UN Security Council deals with conflicts

The United Nations Security Council will discuss the escalation of the conflict on Monday. The UN's main body will meet for an emergency meeting, US Ambbadador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said on Sunday. The meeting is expected to start towards the end of the afternoon of the European time. According to diplomats, the meeting would have been requested by Russia and Ukraine.

NATO calls for restraint

NATO has also called for "restraint and de-escalation". The defense alliance called on Russia to "guarantee unimpeded access to the Ukrainian ports of the Azov Sea" in accordance with international law.

The Kerch Strait is of paramount importance for Moscow and Kiev. The strait is the only link between the Black Sea and the North Sea of ​​Azov. On the sea of ​​Azov, among others, are the industrial zone of Donbbad, controlled by pro-Russian separatists, and the port city of Mariupol, the last great city of East. Ukraine controlled by Kiev, and a major industrial site.

Relations between Kiev and Moscow have long been extremely tense. Russia annexed Crimea in the spring of 2014. The Ukrainian government also accuses Moscow of actively supporting pro-Russian fighters in the conflict in eastern Ukraine.