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              Putin Crimea Speech Seeks to Calm Intervention Fears

   by VOA News

   Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday his country would
   stand up for itself but not at the cost of confrontation with the
   outside world, a conciliatory note after months of tough rhetoric over
   the crisis in Ukraine.

   Putin was on a two-day visit to Crimea, the Ukrainian region annexed by
   Russian this year.

   He spoke on Thursday to Russian ministers and members of parliament.

   The tone of Putin's comments was low-key and he avoided the kind of
   barbs that he has previously directed at Western countries during the
   crisis, which has dragged East-West relations to their lowest ebb since
   the Cold War.

   "We must calmly, with dignity and effectively, build up our country,
   not fence it off from the outside world," he said. "We need to
   consolidate and mobilize but not for war or any kind of confrontation
   ... for hard work in the name of Russia."

   In additional comments, Putin said Russia should aim to sell its oil
   and gas for roubles globally because the dollar monopoly in energy
   trade was damaging Russia's economy.

   And, he said on Thursday that he had signed off on establishing a
   Russian military task force in Crimea but said the presence would not
   be too heavy or costly.

   Ukraine crisis

   Ukraine has denounced Putin's visit to Crimea and refuses to formally
   recognize Moscow's takeover of the strategic Black Sea peninsula of
   nearly 2 million mostly Russian-speaking inhabitants.

   But Putin dismissed Ukraine's protests and said Crimea should become a
   symbol of a powerful and unified new Russian state.

   Speaking of the crisis in eastern Ukraine, he said that Russia "will do
   everything that depends on us to make sure that the (Ukrainian)
   conflict ends as soon as possible."

   However, he did not spell out how Russia intended to help the Ukrainian
   authorities reach a peaceful settlement with the rebels.

   On Thursday, Putin explained his thoughts about Russia's foreign policy
   doctrine, saying it should be peace-loving.

   "All our partners in the world should understand that Russia, like any
   other large, powerful sovereign state, has various ways and means of
   ensuring its national interests, and these include armed forces," he
   said.

   "But this is not a panacea and we do not intend, like some people, to
   dash around the world with a razor blade and wave that blade around.
   But everyone should understand that we also have such things in our
   arsenal," Putin added.

   Many of Putin's critics in Western capitals say he has made dovish
   comments before, but that this has not been matched by actions on the
   ground.

   European countries and the United States allege that Russia is
   supplying arms to separatists in eastern Ukraine. They have also said a
   [1]Russian aid convoy headed to Ukraine could be a cover for a military
   attack.

   Russia reaction

   Moscow has denied those allegations. It says it is only interested in
   protecting the largely Russian-speaking population in eastern Ukraine
   which it says is being targeted by Ukrainian military forces.

   The standoff over Ukraine is now becoming much more costly for both
   sides, with the EU and United States imposing economic sanctions, and
   Russia retaliating by banning imports of many food products.

   Meanwhile, the commander of U.S. ground forces in Europe is visiting
   Poland on Thursday to discuss increasing the U.S. military presence in
   that country, said Stephen Mull, the U.S. ambassador in Warsaw.

   Mull said in Polish on his Twitter account: "Today we are hosting the
   commander of all U.S. ground forces in Europe, Gen. Campbell, for talks
   on increasing the U.S. military presence in Poland."

   Some information for this report provided by Reuters and AFP.
     __________________________________________________________________

   [2]http://www.voanews.com/content/putin-russia-should-build-itself-up-n
   ot-fence-itself-off/2412999.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/russian-convoy-again-headed-toward-ukraine/2412932.html
   2. http://www.voanews.com/content/putin-russia-should-build-itself-up-not-fence-itself-off/2412999.html