US, Russia exchange threats

Russia and the United States exchanged threats on Wednesday at a tense UN security council meeting over the Ukraine crisis, with the Russian envoy saying the US ambassador's "insults" are jeopardising Moscow's willingness to cooperate with Washington on other diplomatic matters. It was the security council’s eighth meeting in three weeks on Ukraine. Russian ambassador Vitaly Churkin was once again alone in defending his country's actions in Crimea. He began his speech by celebrating the treaty signed a day earlier by Putin declaring Crimea part of Russia, saying it honoured the will of the Crimean people and complied with international law. "Yesterday, something truly historic happened," Churkin declared. US ambassador Samantha Power warned Russia that, two days after the Obama administration and other countries imposed sanctions on Russia, the US and its allies “are prepared to take additional steps if Russian aggression or Russian provocations continue.” She also compared Russia’s takeover of Crimea to theft. “A thief can steal property, but that does not confer the right of ownership on the thief,” she said. The Russian ambassador shot back: “It is simply unacceptable to listen to these insults addressed to our country.” He added, “If the US delegation expects our cooperation in the security council on other issues, then Power must understand this quite clearly.” By then, Power had left the meeting to her deputy. Churkin did not elaborate. The US and Russia are the key players in efforts to establish peace talks in Syria, and also are involved in talks over Iran’s nuclear programme, according to a news agency.