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                   Ukraine, Rebels Set for Fresh Peace Talks'

   by VOA News

   Ukraine's government is set to meet with pro-Russian rebels Wednesday
   for a fresh round of talks aimed at ending the separatist war in the
   east.

   The talks in Belarus will include representatives from Ukraine, the
   eastern rebels, Russia, and the Organization for Security and
   Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

   A representative of the OSCE, which is organizing the talks, said the
   agenda will include how to solidify a September cease-fire that has
   reduced the fighting. The pullback of troops and heavy weapons,
   prisoner exchanges, and the delivery of humanitarian aid to eastern
   Ukraine are also expected to be discussed.

   On Tuesday, Ukraine's parliament angered Russia by voting
   overwhelmingly to repeal a law establishing the country as neutral and
   non-aligned. The 303-8 vote, reflecting Kyiv's hardening stance toward
   Russia, opens the way for Ukraine to pursue closer military and
   strategic ties with the West.

   The 2010 law scuttled Tuesday was pushed through shortly after
   pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych -- who was ousted early this
   year -- took office. It defined non-alignment as the
   "non-participation" of Ukraine in military and political alliances, and
   was widely seen as a gesture aimed at reassuring Russia that its
   neighbor would not join NATO.

   The new law -- a priority of Ukraine's new, pro-Western government --
   is not likely to have any immediate effect on Ukraine's relationship
   with NATO.

   But it sparked an angry response from the Russian Foreign Ministry,
   which called the vote "counterproductive."

   Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the vote escalates
   cross-border tensions and will not help to ease the ongoing pro-Russian
   rebellion in eastern Ukraine. Lavrov instead called for dialogue inside
   Ukraine, where fighting has claimed more than 4,700 lives since April.

   Russian Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev, speaking Monday, warned that
   Ukraine's "application for membership in NATO" would turn the country
   into what he called "a potential military adversary of Russia."

   In a separate development, Ukraine's state energy firm, Naftogaz, said
   it has transferred $1.65 billion to Russia, as a second installment on
   a $3.1 billion natural gas debt repayment.

   The payment, announced Tuesday, is part of a deal under which Moscow
   agreed to resume pumping gas to energy-dependent Ukraine, after cutting
   off supplies in June as bilateral tensions escalated. Those gas
   shipments resumed earlier this month.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/ukraine-rebels-set-for-fresh-peace-ta
   lks/2571738.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/ukraine-rebels-set-for-fresh-peace-talks/2571738.html