March 3, 2014

Russia reportedly has demanded the surrender of Ukrainian forces in Crimea. There are reports that the Russian military has given Ukrainian forces in Crimea an ultimatum to surrender tonight by 10:00 pm EST or face a full military assault. With Russian troops surrounding Ukrainian bases and airports and manning roadblocks that have cut Ukrainian access to the peninsula, Russia is, in effect, already in control of Crimea, the southern most region of Ukraine.

After already having ordered thousands of troops into Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin on March 1 received  authorization from the Russian parliament to deploy armed forces “on Ukrainian territory.” Correspondents reported that the road from Sevastopol to Simferopol, the provincial capital, quickly filled with Russian army trucks.

Ukraine’s acting president, Oleksandr Turchynov, subsequently announced that he had put Ukraine’s armed forces on full readiness because of “potential aggression” from the estimated 15,000 Russian troops crossing into Crimea.

In a heated, 90-minute telephone conversation on March 1, President Putin informed U.S. President Barack Obama that Russia had the right to protect its interests and those of Russian speakers not only in Crimea but also in east Ukraine. After the conversation, President Obama expressed his deep concern over Russia’s clear violation of Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity, which he characterized as  a “breach of international law.”

President Vladimir Putin sent thousands of Russian troops into neighboring Crimea, the southernmost region of Ukriane.(AP/Wide World)

In a video address on her website, former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko declared on March 2 that by occupying Crimea, Russia has effectively “declared war” on the United Kingdom and the United States. According to Tymoshenko, British and U.S. representatives in 1994 signed the “Budapest Memorandum” guaranteeing Ukraine’s security. “Vladimir Putin is fully conscious that by declaring war, he is also declaring war on the guarantors of our security, the United States and Britain,” she noted.

European Union foreign ministers went into session today in Brussels to discuss possible punitive steps against Russia unless it pulls its troops back to its own bases in Crimea. British Foreign Secretary William Hague urged Russia to pull back its forces in Crimea or face “significant costs,” echoing comments made by U.S. President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry. “The world cannot just allow this to happen,” Hague told the BBC. “The world cannot say it’s O.K. in effect to violate the sovereignty of another nation in this way.” However, the governments of France and Germany have made it plain that the imposition of economic sanctions on Russia is not on the table, let alone a military intervention. International affairs experts note that much of the European Union is highly dependent on Russian oil and natural gas.  In 2007, EU countries imported from Russia 32.6 percent of their total oil imports and 38.7 percent of total natural gas imports.

The people of Ukraine are split over their attitudes toward East and West. Crimea as well as eastern Ukraine is largely populated with Russian-speaking people with close historic and cultural ties to Russia. Western Ukraine is largely populated with Ukrainian-speaking people who want Ukraine allied with the European Union and the West. Today, pro-Russian demonstrators marched in the streets of the big cities of eastern Ukraine, voicing their allegiance to Moscow. In the city of Donetsk, about 1,000 demonstrators, waving Russian flags and shouting, “Putin, come!” occupied the first floor of the regional government building that has already been flying the Russian flag for several days.

Additional World Book articles:

• Russia in the Post-Soviet World (a special report)
• Ukraine 1994 (a Back in Time article)

February 19, 2014

After several days of quiet in Ukraine, violent clashes again erupted between security forces and antigovernment protesters attempting to storm the parliament in the capital, Kiev. At least 26 people were killed in the hours-long melee, with protesters, numbering in the tens of thousands, hurling cobblestones and Molotov cocktails at police who responded with rubber bullets and stun grenades. The enraged protesters reoccupied Kiev’s City Hall, which they had vacated just two days before. Militants also occupied and set fire to the headquarters of President Viktor Yanukovych’s ruling Party of Regions. The defense ministry ordered paratroopers into Kiev to defend government offices and military installations.

The latest mayhem broke out one day after it was revealed that Russia had purchased $2 billion in Ukrainian government bonds, providing yet another financial lifeline to Yanukovych’s government. In December, Russian President Vladimir Putin pledged $15 billion to back Ukraine’s struggling economy.

The western half of Ukraine supports closer ties with the European Union. The eastern half, where most people speak Russian and are of Russian descent, continues to support Viktor Yanukovych's move to bind Ukraine closer to Russia. (World Book map; map data © MapQuest.com, Inc.)

The unrest in Ukraine began in November, when Yanukovych rejected a trade deal with the European Union (EU) in favor of closer ties with Russia. International affairs experts suggested that Yanukovych feared that moving Ukraine closer to the EU could trigger painful reprisals from Russia, Ukraine’s largest trading partner. During a natural gas price dispute in 2009, Vladimir Putin cut off the flow of natural gas to Ukraine, leaving the country without heat during a particularly bitter cold January. Russia has dominated Ukraine on and off  for more than 200 years. Because of its fertile soil, Ukraine was once described as Russia’s breadbasket.

Yanukovych’s move to bind Ukraine to Russia infuriated the residents of western Ukraine who want the country allied to the West with its tradition of democracy and capitalism. Yanukovych remains popular in the Russian-speaking eastern half of the country, where economic and cultural ties with Russia are strong.

Additional World Book articles:

• Kuchma, Leonid Danylovich
• Viktor Yushchenko
• Ukraine 2004 (a Back in Time article)
• Ukraine 2005 (a Back in Time article)
• Ukraine 2009 (a Back in Time article)
• Ukraine 2012 (a Back in Time article)

January 31, 2014

In an attempt to calm the turmoil roiling Ukraine, President Viktor Yanukovych today signed into law a bill granting amnesty to protesters who have been detained by the government. However, the offer requires opposition forces to first vacate government buildings they have occupied. Opposition forces rejected the bill, arguing that the law essentially makes hostages of the detainees, who, they say, must be freed without any conditions.

The unrest in Ukraine began on November 21 when President Yanukovych backed out of proposed political and free trade accords that would have moved the country closer to the European Union (EU). Experts on the situation in Ukraine note that to most Ukrainians, the West represents freedom, democracy, and prosperity. International affairs experts suggest that Yanukovych feared that moving Ukraine closer to the EU could trigger painful reprisals from Russia, Ukraine’s largest trading partner. During a natural gas price dispute in 2009, Russian President Vladimir Putin cut off the flow of natural gas to Ukraine, leaving the country without heat during a particularly cold January. Russia has dominated Ukraine on and off  for more than 200 years. Because of its fertile soil, Ukraine was once described as Russia’s breadbasket. Three protesters and three police officers have died since the protests turned violent on January 22.

Ukraine's flag adopted in 1992, has two horizontal stripes, blue and yellow (top to bottom). The blue stripe symbolizes the sky, and the yellow stripe symbolizes the wheat fields of Ukraine. The coat of arms dates from the late 900's and features a trident (three-pointed spear). (Flag artwork © 2014 Dream Maker Software; World Book illustration)

Earlier this week, Yanukovych accepted the resignation of Prime Minister Mykola Azarov and his Cabinet. He also offered senior positions to the opposition, who refused the offer. Yanukovych’s move followed a vote by the Ukrainian parliament to repeal recently passed legislation that, among other measures, banned the wearing of helmets by protesters and the blockading of public buildings. Negotiations between the authorities and the opposition on ending the crisis have stalled. On Thursday, Yanukovych announced he had contracted a serious respiratory illness and went on leave.

Additional World Book articles:

• Kiev
• Kuchma, Leonid Danylovich
• Viktor Yushchenko
• Ukraine 2004 (a Back in Time article)
• Ukraine 2005 (a Back in Time article)

January 22, 2014

Two protesters were killed today, shot by police, in clashes between demonstrators and security forces in the Ukrainian capital, Kiev. The fatalities are the first since antigovernment protests began there two months ago. Responding to news of the deaths, thousands of protesters are now pouring into Kiev’s Independence Square. Overhead hangs a cloud of acrid, black smoke from the burning of tires at blocked intersections.

Today’s violence was touched off by police moving in to dismantle a protest camp. Protesters, angered by the government’s apparent tightening of relations with Russia, have been camped out in Kiev since late November. New laws banning unauthorized tents in public areas and prescribing jail terms for anyone blockading public buildings went into effect today. The hasty passage of the laws last week by the Ukrainian parliament triggered renewed protests over the weekend, with young men hurling fireworks and Molotov cocktails at security forces guarding the parliament building. Riot police responded with stun grenades and rubber bullets. At least 200 people were injured in that melee.

Ukrainians protest in Kiev's Independence Square in 2004. Their demonstrations led to the Orange Revolution, an important step toward democracy. However, subsequent governments have failed to live up to the promise of the revolution. (AP/Wide World)

The unrest in Ukraine began on November 21 when President Viktor Yanukovych backed out of proposed political and free trade accords that would have moved the country closer to the European Union (EU). Experts on the situation in Ukraine note that to most Ukrainians, the West represents freedom, democracy, and prosperity. International affairs experts suggest that Yanukovych feared that moving Ukraine closer to the EU could trigger painful reprisals from Russia, Ukraine’s largest trading partner. During a natural gas price dispute in 2009, Russian President Vladimir Putin cut off the flow of natural gas to Ukraine, leaving the country without heat during a particularly cold January.

Russia has dominated Ukraine on and off  for more than 200 years. Because of its fertile soil, Ukraine was once described as Russia’s breadbasket.

Additional World Book articles:

• Kuchma, Leonid Danylovich
• Viktor Yushchenko
• Ukraine 2004 (a Back in Time article)
• Ukraine 2005 (a Back in Time article)

December 18, 2013

The Russian government announced yesterday that the state-owned Gazprom energy company has dropped the price of natural gas supplied to Ukraine from more than $400 per 1,000 cubic meters to $268.50. Russian President Vladimir Putin also agreed yesterday to purchase $15 billion in Ukrainian government bonds. In Kiev, the Ukrainian capital, Prime Minister Mykola Azarov told his Cabinet ministers that the aid from Russia is saving Ukraine from “bankruptcy and social collapse” and that the lower gas prices will allow for “a revival of economic growth.”

The massive antigovernment protests that have disrupted Kiev and other Ukrainian cities for weeks continued, however. The leaders of the opposition movement are demanding to know what Ukraine offered Russia in return for the aid. Speaking yesterday in Kiev’s Independence Square, opposition party leader Vitali Klitschko told protesters that President Viktor Yanukovych was betraying Ukraine’s independence by joining with Russia.

(World Book map; map data © MapQuest.com, Inc.)

The protests in Kiev began in late November with demonstrators blockading government buildings and erecting barricades in a campaign to bring down the Yanukovych government. The unrest was triggered by Yanukovych’s refusal to sign sweeping political and free trade accords that would have moved Ukraine closer to the European Union (EU). Experts on the situation in Ukraine note that to most Ukrainians, the West represents freedom, democracy, and prosperity. International affairs experts suggest that Yanukovych feared that moving Ukraine closer to the EU could trigger painful reprisals from Russia, Ukraine’s largest trading partner. During a natural gas price dispute in 2009, Putin cut off the flow of natural gas to Ukraine, leaving the country without heat during a particularly cold January.

Russia has dominated Ukraine on and off  for more than 200 years. Because of its fertile soil, Ukraine was once described as Russia’s breadbasket.

Additional World Book articles:

• Kuchma, Leonid Danylovich
• Viktor Yushchenko
• Ukraine 2004 (a Back in Time article)
• Ukraine 2005 (a Back in Time article)

August 14, 2013

The longest recession to hit the eurozone has officially ended, economists at Eurostat, the statistical office for the European Union (EU), announced today. Economists generally define a recession as the contraction of a nation’s gross domestic product for two consecutive quarters. Eurostat officials said the eurozone’s recession, which began in the fourth quarter of 2011, ended during the second quarter of 2013, as the group’s collective economic output grew by a total of 0.3 percent. The recession was the longest in continental Europe in the past 40 years. The eurozone, which was founded in 1999, consists of 17 EU countries that use the euro as a common currency.

Economists cautioned, however, that economic growth across the eurozone remained uneven. The bloc emerged from the recession mainly because of growth in France and Germany, whose economic output increased by 0.5 and 0.7 percent, respectively. However, the economies of some eurozone countries, including Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain, continued to contract during the second quarter, though at a slower rate. In Greece, the rate of economic contraction slowed slightly. Portugal, one of the bloc’s weakest economies, grew by a surprising 1.1 percent.

The euro has replaced the individual currencies of 17 member nations of the European Union. (European Central Bank)

Officials noted that unemployment across the eurozone remains high, exceeding 25 percent in some countries. They also warned that despite the the good news, Europe’s economy remains deeply troubled. “I hope there will be no premature, self-congratulatory statements stating ‘the crisis is over,’” the EU’s top monetary official wrote in a blog.

Additional World Book articles:

• Crisis in the Eurozone (a Special Report)
• Economics, World 2010 (a Back in Time article)
• Economics, World 2011 (a Back in Time article)

May 28, 2013

The Russian government announced today that it is going ahead with deliveries of S-300 anti-aircraft missiles to Syria. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov declared that the missiles are a “stabilizing factor” that will discourage “hotheads” from entering the Syrian civil war. At a press conference in Moscow, Ryabkov suggested that the European Union’s (EU) decision to lift its arms embargo on Syria has endangered the prospects for a peace conference next month. The conference is backed by both Russia and the United States. Lifting the embargo could allow weapons to flow to Syrian rebel forces.

Israel responded to Russia’s announcement by declaring that it is prepared to launch missile strikes against any shipments of advanced Russian weapons to Syria. Israeli officials fear that the Russian weapons could upset the current balance in the Middle East, which involves the Lebanon-based radical Islamist organization Hezbollah. Hezbollah, which backs Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, fired thousands of missiles into northern Israel in 2006. Hezbollah relies on Syria to provide a conduit for arms from Iran. Preserving that flow is a matter of life or death for Hezbollah. Stemming the flow is of primary importance to Israel.

Syria has been an important Middle Eastern ally of Russia, Iran, and the Hezbollah organization in Lebanon. (World Book map; map data © MapQuest.com, Inc.)

British Foreign Secretary William Hague announced yesterday that the arms embargo on the Syrian opposition would be lifted after June 1. All EU sanctions against the Assad regime will remain in place. Hague stated that lifting the embargo “sends a very strong message from Europe to the Assad regime.” France and the United Kingdom have pushed to allow European governments to deliver arms to the rebels.

The rebellion against the Assad regime began in March 2011 and has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of people and the destruction of World Heritage sites in the ancient city of Aleppo. The BBC reported today that Assad’s forces massacred more than 200 civilians earlier this month after entering the towns of al-Bayda and Baniyas in western Syria.

Russia has long been an ally of Syria and the ruling Assad family. According to international affairs experts, Russian officials fear that if President Assad is pushed out, radical Islamists could take his place. They regard a radical Islamist regime in Syria as a threat to the internal security of Russia, which spent years putting down an Islamist rebellion in Chechnya. In addition, the Russian navy’s sole foothold in the Mediterranean Sea is the Syrian port of Tartus. Russia has leased the Tartus facility as part of a multibillion-dollar debt write-off brokered in 1971.

Additional World Book articles:

• Syria: The Roots of Rebellion (a special report)
• The Middle East: From Fall to Spring (a special report)
• Syria 2011 (a Back in Time article)
• Syria 2012 (a Back in Time article)

 April 29, 2013

The European Commission (EC), the executive body of the European Union, banned the use of insecticides that some researchers have linked to the collapse of bee colonies. Some scientists believe that neonicotinoids—a new class of insecticides chemically related to nicotine—are harming bees. Nicotine is a natural insecticide that is fatal to many insects but less harmful to mammals. Until recently, nicotine-related insecticides were also believed to be less harmful to beneficial insects than traditional formulations.

A recent study in the journal Science, however, linked the use of certain neonicotinoids to a dramatic decrease in queen bees. Another recent study in Science linked insecticide exposure in bees to the problem of forager bees—worker bees that collect nectar
and pollen—having difficulty finding their way back to their hives. The chemical apparently affected the homing ability of the bees.

A bee, covered in pollen, sips nectar from a flower. Many flowers and kinds of food crops depend upon bee pollinators. (© Steve Hopkin, Taxi/Getty Images)

Scientists and environmentalists are very concerned about the health of bees. Honey and other bees pollinate around one-third of the world’s crop production. In 2006, beekeepers in the United States began reporting that large numbers of bees were mysteriously disappearing from their hives—which became known as colony collapse disorder (CCD).  It soon became clear that this was a worldwide problem. Scientists are not certain of all the factors involved in CCD. Some of the causes considered likely include mites and other parasites and viruses. Even if these are the primary causes of CCD, however, it could be that certain insecticides weaken the bees and are causing them to be more vulnerable to illness.

The EC ruling states that the use of neonicotinoids should be restricted to crops not attractive to bees and other pollinators. Crops such as wheat and barley, for example, are not of interest to such insects. The EC is imposing a two-year restriction on the neonicotinoids—clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiametoxam—beginning no later than July 1, 2013.

Additional World Book articles:

• Biology (Back in time-2007)
• The Latest Buzz About Honey Bees (Special Report)

Additional articles and resources:

• Honey bees and Colony Collapse Disorder (United States Department of Agriculture website)
• Silence of the Bees (Public Broadcasting System (PBS) film produced for the series Nature concerning scientists race to solve the mystery of CDC

March 18, 2013

Banks on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus did not open today and will remain closed until March 21 amid an accelerating financial crisis that has sent stock prices down on markets worldwide. Yesterday, the president of Cyprus, Nicos Anastasiades, announced that his government would receive a €10-billion ($13-million) financial bailout from the European Union (EU), the European Central Bank, and the International Monetary Fund. The president stated that with the Cyprian banking system on the verge of collapse, the country faces its worst crisis since the 1974 Turkish invasion. Cyprian banks invested heavily in Greek government bonds. Their value have been downgraded as Greece was forced into multiple bailouts to avoid default on its national debt.

Under the terms of the Cyrpian agreement, people with less than €100,000 ($130,000) in their bank accounts are to pay a one-time tax of 6.75 percent on their balances. Those with more than €100,000 will pay 9.9 percent. Most of the depositors who have more than €100,000 on account are Russian. In recent years, Russians have moved vast sums through banks on Cyprus, allegedly as part of money-laundering schemes. (Money laundering is a process that obscures the source of money obtained illegally.)

Nicosia is the capital and banking center of Cyprus. (© F1 Online/Alamy Images)

The Cyprus bailout follows those for Greece, Portugal, Ireland, and the Spanish banking sector. It is the first where bank depositors are to be taxed. German and Dutch officials have stated that from now on when a eurozone bank or member nations fails, bond investors and perhaps even bank depositors will be forced to share the loss. The one-time levy has sparked widespread public anger. Russian President Vladimir Putin has condemned it as “unfair, unprofessional and dangerous.”

Joerg Asmussen, a member of the European Central Bank’s governing council, stated today that there would be no objection to Cyprus altering the bailout terms. However, Cyprus will nevertheless be responsible for a €5.8-billion financial contribution, regardless of its source. Moody’s Investors Service, the New York-based credit ratings agency, warned that taxing individual bank accounts “signals euro-area policymakers’ willingness to risk triggering wider financial market disruptions in pursuit of other policy goals.”

Additional World Book articles:

• Crisis in the Eurozone (a Special Report)
• Economics, world 2010 (a Back in Time article)
• Economics, world 2011 (a Back in Time article)

October 12, 2012

The European Union (EU), an economic and political partnership between 27 European countries, won the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize. In a decision that aroused some criticism, the Nobel Committee praised what it said was the EU’s “most important result: the successful struggle for peace and reconciliation and for democracy and human rights.” The committee noted that “The EU is currently undergoing grave economic difficulties and considerable social unrest.” But, the award announcement said, “The stabilizing part played by the EU has helped to transform most of Europe from a continent of war to a continent of peace.” The EU also won praise for its efforts to maintain economic and political stability in former Communist countries in eastern Europe after the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1989.

A conservative British politician and party leader in the European Parliament was quoted by Reuters news agency as calling the decision “out of touch.” “The Nobel committee is a little late for an April fool’s joke,” he said. A Russian human rights activist called the decision “laughable.”

The European Union (EU), which promotes economic and political cooperation among its members, consists of 27 members: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. (World Book map)

The EU was formally created in the early 1990′s. Greater cooperation between the Eurpean states began after World War II (1939-1945) with trade agreements. Over time, expanded cooperation on economic issues led to the creation of the European Community (EC). In 1993, the EC members extended their cooperation into the areas of law enforcement and military and foreign policy. In 1999, 11 EU nations adopted a common currency, the euro. The euro is currently used by 17 of the 27 European Union member nations.

Additional World Book articles:

• Monnet, Jean
• Schuman, Robert
• Europe (1950) (a Back in Time article)
• Europe (1953) (a Back in Time article)
• European Union: The Euro (a Special Report)
• Crisis in the Eurozone (a Special Report)