Ukraine Says Russian Tanks Have Crossed the Border

The Ukrainian government says
that the Russian military has crossed the nation’s border with
three tanks.

From
Reuters:

“We have observed columns passing with armoured personnel
carriers, other armoured vehicles and artillery pieces, and tanks
which, according to our information, came across the border and
this morning were in Snizhnye,” Ukrainian Interior Minister Arseny
Avakov told reporters in Kiev.

He said Ukrainian forces had destroyed part of the column and
fighting was still under way, but gave no further details. …

He said the columns had come across the border at checkpoints
seized by the rebels “despite the Russian Federation’s statements
that it welcomes the peace process and that the order has been
given to strengthen border controls”.

In a phone call between Secretary of State John Kerry and
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov yesterday, the latter
“underscored the need for the swiftest halt by Kiev of its military
operation … agreement on terms of a ceasefire, a solution to
acute humanitarian issues and … real national dialogue on
Ukraine’s future structure,”
according to another Reuters report.

As The Washington Post
highlights, Lavrov yesterday also “acknowledged for the
first time an official relationship with pro-Russian separatists in
eastern Ukraine” by which the latter group is receiving
humanitarian aid. The Post also notes that
one of the separatist leaders met with Vladimir Zhirinovsky, one of
Russia’s most notorious, authoritarian political leaders who has
throughout the years called
for a takeover of Ukraine.

Ukraine’s new president, Petro Poroshenko, has not yet commented
on the Russian tanks, but earlier stated that the “terrorists must
lay down their weapons” for peace talks to proceed. “We do not need
negotiations for the sake of negotiations. Our peace plan must
become the basis for further de-escalation of the
conflict.” 

Below is a video purported to be of one of the tanks. Another
video is here.