ABOVE: Pro-Russia activists and supporters of Ukrainian unity clashed on Thursday in the worst violence that the eastern city of Donetsk has yet witnessed
MOSCOW – Russia has warned again that it reserves the right to intervene in defence of ethnic Russians it says are under threat in eastern Ukraine.
The Foreign Ministry said in a statement Friday that authorities in Ukraine have lost control over the country and are unable to provide basic public security.
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Russian officials pointed to clashes overnight Thursday in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk as evidence of growing instability. One person died and 29 were injured in violence between pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian activists.
Troops under apparent Russian command have already deployed widely across the Ukraine’s southern province of Crimea, which is to hold a referendum Sunday on seceding and merging with Russia.
Ukraine has accused Russia of a military invasion, and the West is threatening Moscow with sanctions.
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