On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that his support for Ukraine's presidential election planned to take place on May 25, and asked pro-Russian separatist in eastern Ukraine to postpone their referendum on autonomy from Ukraine which is planned for May 11.
These statements by Mr. Putin are a complete U-turn from his previous position.
After talking with Switzerland President Didier Burkhalter, current head of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) which is coordinating the mediation effort in Ukraine, Putin said: "I would like to stress that while they [Ukraine's interim government] are a move in the right direction, [they] will not decided anything if all the citizens of Ukraine fail to understand how their rights are protected after the election is held."
Russia has repeatedly stated their right to protect the interest of the Russian speaking population in Ukraine. This position is what led to Russia's annexation of former Ukrainian region Crimea back in March.
Mr. Putin also asked the pro-Russian activist in eastern Ukraine to postpone their referendum on greater autonomy from Ukraine planned for May 11.
"We think the most important thing now is to launch direct dialogue, genuine, full-fledged dialogue between the Kiev authorities and representatives of south east Ukraine," Mr. Putin said while standing next to Mr. Burkhalter. "We all want the crisis to end as soon as possible, and in such a way that takes into account the interest of all people in Ukraine no matter where they live."
He also said that Russia had withdrawn it troops, mounting 40,000, from its Russian-Ukrainian border.
However, NATO has said it has seen no significant change in the number of troops positioned along the border.
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