Russia accuses West of Ukraine plot

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused the West of wanting to "seize" Ukraine, amid escalating rhetoric between Russia and the US. On Thursday US Secretary of State John Kerry had accused Russia of "distraction, deception and destabilisation" in eastern Ukraine. The US says Russia has failed to live up to an agreement to end the crisis struck in Geneva last week. American officials say Russia is behind unrest in eastern Ukrainian cities. Pro-Russian separatists are occupying key buildings in a dozen eastern Ukrainian towns, defying the central government. Ukraine has launched military raids to regain the buildings, which Mr Lavrov described as a "bloody crime". "The West... wants to seize Ukraine so to speak, being solely motivated by its own geopolitical ambitions and not the interests of the Ukrainian people," Mr Lavrov said, according to BBC.