Ukraine: Sanctions Threat As Lavrov Meets Kerry

The EU says it could vote on Russian sanctions on Thursday if there is no de-escalation in the Ukraine stand-off before then.

The move came as Western powers tried to rein in Russian President Vladimir Putin's military threat to Ukraine.

Mr Putin has previously said any Western sanctions against Russia would be counter-productive.

US Secretary of State John Kerry in Kiev with Ukraine's leaders

America has already threatened sanctions, with a senior US official saying Washington is ready to impose them in days rather than weeks.

US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov are due to meet in Paris this afternoon to discuss the ongoing tensions.

But before that Mr Lavrov is holding talks in Madrid.

Mr Kerry placed a candle and roses atop the Shrine of the Fallen in Kiev

Earlier, US President Barack Obama spoke to German Chancellor Angela Merkel about a plan to end the stalemate, sparked by Russian intervention in Ukraine's Crimea region.

Under the proposal, Russia would pull back its forces in Crimea to their bases in the peninsula and limit troop numbers to a Ukraine-agreed maximum of 11,000.

A senior American official said the plan would also see international monitors allowed in to ensure the human rights of ethnic Russians are protected.

Seen as an effort to offer Russian President Vladimir Putin a way out of the crisis without losing face, the plan would pave the way for direct talks between Moscow and the new Ukraine government with the potential for some international mediation.

Troops in Belbek relax after a stand-off with the Russian military

The proposal would also see planned elections in Ukraine this May go ahead.

But Mr Obama sounded a cautious note when commenting on the crisis at a fundraiser on Tuesday night.

"We may be able to de-escalate over the next several days and weeks," he said. "It's a serious situation and we are spending a lot of time on it."

People watch the latest news on a TV screen at Independence square, Kiev

The US official added that Mr Obama had made clear to Ms Merkel that he would not attend a G8 summit scheduled for June in Sochi, Russia, if the situation in Ukraine had not changed.

Preparatory meetings about the summit have already been suspended.

A White House statement about the Obama-Merkel phone call said the two leaders expressed grave concern over Russia's "clear violation of Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity."

John Kerry boards his plane as he prepares to leave Kiev

They "agreed on the importance of de-escalating the situation, including through the deployment of international observers and human rights monitors, and of initiating direct talks between Russia and Ukraine," it said.

Mr Putin has denied that Russian armed forces were directly engaged in the bloodless seizure of Crimea.

But he said he had the right to send in military forces to protect Russian nationals who feel threatened by the new Ukrainian government after pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych was ousted.

Mr Obama dismissed the Russian leader's claims, saying: "President Putin seems to have a different set of lawyers making a different set of interpretations, but I don't think that's fooling anybody."

It comes after footage emerged showing a tense exchange between Russian and Ukrainian soldiers at the Belbek airbase in Sevastopol.

The video shows around a dozen Russian soldiers warning the unarmed Ukrainian servicemen to back away as they tried to take their positions back -before firing warning shots over their heads.

Russia also test-fired an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile on Tuesday, although the White House later said it knew weeks in advance of the "routine" test.

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