Deepening tensions: Pro-Russian militants armed with pistols and rifles storm police stations in eastern Ukrainian cities pulling Europe closer to brink of 'gas war'



Armed pro-Moscow activists have seized state buildings in eastern cities

In Donetsk - the regional capital - protestors occupied the police headquarters forcing the police chief to quit his post and leave the building

The red, white and blue Russian flag raised in place of the Ukrainian flag

Occupations have deepened tensions prompting fears of flashpoints

If any pro-Russian protestors are killed or injured by Ukrainian forces, it could prompt the Kremlin to step in to protect Russian-speaking people

NATO says Russia is massing troops on Ukraine's eastern border

Gas crisis could affect millions as Russia threatens to turn off natural gas pumped to the west via Ukraine in row over unpaid bill and rising prices







Armed pro-Russian militants have today raised their flags over official buildings in two eastern Ukrainian cities deepening a stand-off with Moscow, which Kiev warned, could drag Europe closer to the brink of a 'gas war'.

In the regional capital of Donetsk the police chief quit his post as protestors - dressed in the uniforms of the now defunct Ukrainian riot-police - stormed the headquarters.

They occupied the ground floor and hoisted the black and orange flag adopted by pro-Russian separatists over the building, in place of the Ukrainian flag.

Kostyantyn Pozhydayev appeared on the steps of the police station to speak to the protestors, telling them he was stepping down 'in accordance with your demands'.

As he left the building, he was accompanied by some of his officers.

Members of the disbanded Ukraine's elite Berkut riot police, together with Russian separatists, enter the seized regional police headquarters in Donetsk today

A masked pro-Russian militant stands behind a barricade of tyres and concrete blocks in front of the regional building in the eastern Ukrainian capital of Donetsk

Hundreds of pro-Russian supporters join militants to barricade the state building as protestors force the regional police chief from his post

Witnesses in Donetsk said the men who entered the police building were wearing the uniforms of the Berkut, the feared riot police squad that was disbanded in February after Yanukovych's ouster.



Berkut officers' violent dispersal of a demonstration in Kiev in November set off vast protests in the capital that culminated in bloodshed in February when more than 100 people died in sniper fire; the acting government says the snipers were police.



It was not immediately clear if the men who occupied the Donetsk police building had made any demands.



In Slaviansk, a town which lies about 90 miles from the border with Russia, at least 20 men armed with pistols and rifles were guarding the police station and a security services headquarters - another 20 men were said to be inside.

They wore St. George's ribbons, which have become a symbol of pro-Russian protesters in eastern Ukraine.



The ribbons were originally associated with the Soviet Union's victory in World War II.



A masked guard in Slovyansk, who gave his name only as Sergei, said they have 'only one demand: a referendum and joining Russia'.

The man said they seized the building because they wanted to protect it from radical nationalists from western Ukraine and 'the junta who seized power in Kiev'.

'We don't want to be slaves of America and the West,' he said. 'We want to live with Russia.'

The Interior Ministry said in a statement that the attackers used tear gas and stun grenades when they stormed the building, injuring three policemen.



Protestors in Kharkov show their support for the disbanded Berkut riot police

Members of Ukraine's former elite Berkut riot police hold a line outside the regional police headquarters in Donetsk

The attackers' goal was to seize arms from the police station, authorities said, adding that there were about 40 automatic rifles and 400 pistols as well as ammunition inside.



Interior Minister Arsen Avakov pledged a 'very tough response' to the seizure while local media reported special forces dispatched to the area.



The militants replaced the Ukrainian flag on one of the buildings with the red, white and blue flag of Russia.



Some local residents helped the militants build barricades out of tyres in anticipation that police would try to force them out.

In Slaviansk, the mayor said the men who seized the police station were demanding a referendum on autonomy and possible annexation by Russia.

Protesters in other eastern cities have made similar demands after a referendum in Crimea last month in which voters opted to split off from Ukraine, leading to annexation by Russia.



T he latest wave of unrest shows the spiraling anger in eastern Ukraine, which has a large Russian-speaking population.

The region was the epicentre of support for the deposed Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych, who was ousted in February after months of protests in the capital, Kiev.

Ethnic Russians in Ukraine's east widely fear that the authorities who took over after Yanukovych's fall will suppress them.

The deepening unrest is spreading through towns and cities in eastern Ukraine, close to the border with Russia

Police chief Kostyantyn Pozhydayev appeared on the steps of the police station to speak to the protestors, telling them he was stepping down 'in accordance with your demands'. As he left the building, he was accompanied by some of his officers

Protestors replaced the Ukrainian flag flying from this Donetsk state building, with the red, white and blue flag of Russia

Masked activists brandishing metal poles stormed the regional prosecutor's office in Donetsk. Riot police escorted groups of the protestors from the building. No one was arrested

The occupations have deepened tensions in the region, causing potential flashpoints.

If any of the pro-Russian protestors are killed or injured by Ukrainian forces, it could prompt the Kremlin to intervene to protect the local Russian-speaking population in scenes reminiscent of the takeover of Crimea.



Moscow denies any plan to send in forces or split Ukraine, but the Western-leaning authorities in Kiev believe Russia is trying to create a pretext to interfere again.



NATO says Russian armed forces are massing on Ukraine's eastern border, while Moscow says they are on normal manoeuvres.

Ukraine's acting foreign minister, Andrii Deshchytsia, said he had spoken in a phone call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and demanded Moscow stop what he called 'provocative actions' by its agents in eastern Ukraine.

Russia and Ukraine have been in confrontation since protests in Kiev forced the Moscow-backed president from office, and the Kremlin sent troops into Crimea.

The crisis has been seized upon by some right-wing nationalists in the EU who are campaigning for next month's European Parliament elections. They blame Brussels for antagonising Russia.

Marine Le Pen, leader of France's far-right National Front was in Moscow on Saturday and met the speaker of Russia's lower house of parliament, one of the people on an EU sanctions list.

'I am surprised a Cold War on Russia has been declared in the European Union,' Russian media quoted her as saying.

The EU and the United States imposed sanctions on Russian officials and leading business figures in response to Moscow's annexation of Crimea, which is home to Russia's Black Sea fleet and was part of Russia until 1954.

An armed man stands in front of a group of pro-Russian protestors near police headquarters in Slaviansk, a town around 90 miles from the border with Russia

Masked activists occupy the police station, and build a barricade as the crowds watch on. Pro-Moscow supporters have seized a number of government buildings in eastern parts of the country A masked protestor stands guard outside the headquarters of Ukraine's security agency in the eastern city of Lugansk. Separatists demanding a referendum to join Russia seized the building a week ago as a wave of secessionist anger swept eastern Ukraine

GAS DISPUTE THREATENS TO AFFECT MILLIONS OF PEOPLE ACROSS EUROPE

While the crisis within Ukraine itself is still unresolved, the gas dispute threatens to spread the impact of the row to millions of people across Europe. A large proportion of the natural gas which EU states buy from Russia is pumped via Ukrainian territory, so if Russia makes good on a threat to cut off Ukraine for non-payment of its bills, customers further west will have supplies disrupted. Russia is demanding Kiev pay a much higher price for its gas, and settle unpaid bills.

Russian state-owned gas giant Gazprom and its Ukrainian counterpart, Naftogaz, are in talks, but the chances of an agreement are slim. 'I would say we are coming nearer to a solution of the situation, but one in the direction that is bad for Ukraine,' Ukrainian Energy Minister Yuri Prodan said in an interview with the German newspaper, Boersenzeitung. 'We are probably steering towards Russia turning off its gas provision,' he was quoted as saying. That raised the spectre of a repeat of past 'gas wars', when Ukraine's gas was cut off, with a knock-on effect on supplies to EU states. The scope for compromise narrowed after the Naftogaz chief executive told a Ukrainian newspaper Kiev was suspending payments to Gazprom pending a conclusion of talks over a new deal. Ukraine has de facto stopped payments already because it failed to make an installment of more than $500 million due earlier this month to Russian state gas giant Gazprom. Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov, said: 'What does suspending mean? They've not paid at all,' since mid-way through last month. Moscow says it does not want to turn off Ukraine's gas if it can be avoided, and that it will honour all commitments to supply its EU customers. Kiev and Brussels are working out ways to keep supplies flowing to EU states, and for those countries to then pump the gas to Ukraine by reversing the flow in their pipelines.

The occupations have deepened tensions in the region, causing potential flashpoints. If any of the pro-Russian protestors are killed or injured by Ukrainian forces, it could prompt the Kremlin to intervene to protect the local Russian-speaking population

A man armed with a pistol, tucked into his top, stands guard outside the police headquarters in Slaviansk

Pro-Russian militants who have seized the building in Slaviansk have looted at least 400 handguns and 20 automatic weapons from the police station

Moscow has so far scoffed at the Western measures and warned that, in the long run, the EU and Washington will come off worse by losing out on trade with Russia.

Gennady Timchenko, a billionaire oil and gas trader who is on the U.S. list of people subject to asset freezes and visa bans, joined the chorus of Russian defiance.

'The fact that I was included in the list was a little surprising maybe, but it was quite an honour for me,' he said in an interview with the state-run Rossiya television station to be broadcast later on Saturday.

He said Russian natural gas would increasingly be sold to Asia, as part of a strategy of turning away from a Europe, which the Kremlin considers unfriendly.

'It seems to me they (the Europeans) just don't understand. The politicians are behaving ... in a very short-sighted way.'

The activists have erected a makeshift checkpoint at the entrance to the eastern Ukrainian town of Slovyansk