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Ukraine's Military On Full Alert For Possible Russian Attack

Ukraine's Military On Full Alert For Possible Russian Attack
Reuters
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KIEV, April 30 (Reuters) - Ukraine's armed forces are on full military alert in case of a Russian invasion, the country's acting president said on Wednesday, reiterating concern over Russian troops massed on the border.

"I once again return to the real danger of the Russian Federation beginning a land war against Ukraine," Oleksander Turchinov told a meeting of regional governors in Kiev, Interfax-Ukraine reported.

"Our armed forces have been put on full military readiness," he said.

Russia says it has no plan to invade eastern Ukraine following its annexation of the Crimean peninsula in March, but Turchinov's remark made clear the pro-Western government in Kiev saw no reason to reduce the readiness of its armed forces.

Kiev, however, accuses Moscow of orchestrating an armed uprising in the industrial east by Russian-speaking separatists who have seized government buildings in a string of towns and cities, largely unopposed by police. (Reporting and writing by Matt Robinson, Editing by Timothy Heritage)

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Before You Go

Separatists Tighten Control On East Ukraine
(01 of22)
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An elderly man stands next a barricade near the secret service building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk on April 22, 2014. (DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(02 of22)
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Mourners attend the funeral of men killed in a gunfight on April 20, 2014, in the eastern Ukrainian city of Slavyansk, held on April 22, 2014. (KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(03 of22)
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Mourners keep watch outside the house of a pro-Russian activist after his remains were brought to his home in the small village of Aleksandrovka, following a funeral service on April 22, 2014 near Slovyansk, Ukraine. (Scott Olson/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(04 of22)
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A pro-Russian militant looks out from the barricaded entrance of the city council building on April 21, 2014 in Slovyansk, Ukraine. (Scott Olson/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(05 of22)
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Commander of the so-called army of southeast Ukraine, Valeriy Bolotov, speaks to the press after he was pronounced the 'people's governor' in the secret service building of Luhansk, Ukraine on April 21, 2014. (DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(06 of22)
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The separatist leader of the eastern Ukrainian city of Slavyansk, Vyacheslav Ponomaryov (L), leaves after holding a press conference in Slavyansk on April 21, 2014. (GENYA SAVILOV/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(07 of22)
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A pro-Russian activist guards a barricade outside the regional administrative building as a flag of the so-called 'People's Republic of Donetsk' hung in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk on April 21, 2014. (ANATOLIY STEPANOV/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(08 of22)
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Children pose for a picture with a pro-Russian militant outside the city council building on April 21, 2014 in Slovyansk, Ukraine. (Scott Olson/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(09 of22)
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Ievgeniy Gorbik, a spokesperson for the pro-Russian militants occupying Slovyansk, speaks to the press in front of a tank parked near the security service building on April 21, 2014 in Slovyansk, Ukraine. (Scott Olson/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(10 of22)
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A boy rides his bike in front of a barricade near the Slovyansk police station on April 21, 2014 in Slovyansk, Ukraine. (Scott Olson/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(11 of22)
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A pro-Russian militant sits on top of an armored personnel carrier in front of the occupied security service building on April 21, 2014 in Slovyansk, Ukraine. (Scott Olson/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(12 of22)
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A pro-Russia activist hangs a flag of the so-called 'People's Republic of Donetsk' on the regional administration building seized by separatists as armed men in military fatigues guard the premises in the eastern Ukrainian city of Slavyansk on April 21, 2014. (GENYA SAVILOV/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(13 of22)
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A woman and child with an armed man in military fatigues guarding a barricade outside the regional administration building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Slavyansk on April 21, 2014. (GENYA SAVILOV/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(14 of22)
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Pro-Russia activists sing the Russian national anthem during a pro-Russia rally outside the secret service building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk on April 21, 2014. (DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(15 of22)
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Pro-Russia activists sing the Russian national anthem during a pro-Russia rally outside the secret service building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Lugansk on April 21, 2014. (DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(16 of22)
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A pro-Russia supporter stands at a barricade outside the regional police building seized by separatists in the eastern Ukrainian city of Slavyansk on April 21, 2014. (KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(17 of22)
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An armed man in military fatigues guards a barricade outside the regional administration building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Slavyansk on April 21, 2014. (GENYA SAVILOV/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(18 of22)
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An armoured personnel carrier with a Russian flag drives outside the regional administration building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Slavyansk on April 21, 2014. (GENYA SAVILOV/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(19 of22)
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An Orthodox priest blesses protesters during a pro-Russian rally outside the secret service building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk on April 21, 2014. (DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(20 of22)
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The bodyguard of the leader of the separatist rebels in the eastern Ukrainian city of Slavyansk attends a press-conference in the city on April 20, 2014. (KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(21 of22)
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A young boy poses with an armed man in military fatigues guarding a barricade outside the regional administration building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Slavyansk on April 20, 2014. (KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(22 of22)
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A pro-Russian activist stands guard outside of the Donetsk Regional Administration building on April 20, 2014 in Donetsk, Ukraine. (Scott Olson/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
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