Russia rejected accusations that it is acting aggressively toward neighbor Ukraine, telling its Western critics Monday to put aside 'geopolitical calculations' in favor of the interests of the people in the former Soviet republic.
Moscow has defended its parliament’s approval of President Vladimir Putin’s use of military force to protect its citizens in the Crimean Peninsula – an autonomous region of eastern Ukraine with strong loyalty to Russia – despite its G8 partners condemning its military buildup in the country and demanding that it withdraw.
