MOSCOW, April 9 - Russia on Wednesday dismissed as "groundless" concerns in Kiev and the West over the presence of its troops near the border with Ukraine, saying they posed no threat, and accused Washington of fuelling tension in the region, Reuters reported.

MOSCOW, April 9 - Russian President Vladimir Putin told state-controlled natural gas producer Gazprom on Wednesday to hold off on making Ukraine pay up front for gas from Russia, Reuters reported.

KIEV, April 9 - Ukraine is preparing for a potential disruption of Russian gas supplies, Energy and Coal Industry Minister Yuriy Prodan said Wednesday.

KIEV, April 9 - The United States, the European Union, Russia and Ukraine will meet at ministerial level next week to discuss the Ukraine crisis, the EU said, offering a glimpse of possible diplomatic progress in the conflict.

KIEV, April 9 - Despite winning rare praise from the West for freeing an opponent from jail, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych is likely to resist extra pressure and the lure of trade deals to release his fiercest rival, ex-prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko, Reuters reported.

KIEV, April 9 – The Supreme Military Court of Tripoli (Libya) will begin on April 10 hearing an appeal against the decision to sentence 19 Ukrainians to 10 years in prison, Ukrainian News reported Tuesday.

KIEV, April 9 – Pro-government and opposition groups are in talks to defuse Ukraine's latest political crisis by holding an emergency session of Parliament and to approve legislation required for closer integration with the European Union, a lawmaker said Tuesday.

KIEV, April 9 – The time before the signing of the Association Agreement with the European Union should be used to prepare various fields of the national economy for working within a free trade area with the EU, said Yevhen Perelyhin, the head of the department of European integration at the presidential administration.

KIEV, April 9 - Former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko, serving a seven-year jail sentence on abuse-of-office charges, on Monday dismissed new allegations against her of involvement in the murder of a parliament deputy almost 16 years ago.

KIEV, April 6 – The three-year sentence handed down to former Environment Minister Georgiy Filipchuk is another stage of political repression conducted by the authorities and their revenge for litigations with Vanco, the Batkivschyna Party said.