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Moscow: troops in Ukraine defending Russians

By John Heilprin
Published March 3, 2014 4:32pm ET
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Moscow: troops in Ukraine defending Russians
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov delivers his speech during the opening of a high-level segment of the 25th session of the Human Rights Council, at the European headquarters of the United Nations, in Geneva, Switzerland, Monday, March 3, 2014. Lavrov said Russian troops that have streamed into Ukraine are protecting his country's citizens living there. He said that it's necessary to use Russian troops in Ukraine "until the normalization of the political situation." (AP Photo/Keystone, Salvatore Di Nolfi) | Salvatore Di Nolfi

GENEVA (AP) — Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday sought to justify the use of Russian troops streaming into neighboring Ukraine’s Crimea region as a necessary protection for his country’s citizens living there. He also urged Kiev to comply with a deal that opposing Ukrainian sides had reached on Feb. 21 but Moscow did not sign.

The use of Russian troops is necessary “until the normalization of the political situation” in Ukraine, Lavrov said at an opening of a monthlong session of the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva.

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