02/03/2014 BBC Weekend News

Ukraine's Prime Minister says his country is on the brink of disaster

and he accuses Russia of declaring war. Ukranian and Russian soldiers

now face each other in the Crimea region, with the West condemning

Moscow's decision to send troops in. The sovereignty and editorial

integrity of Ukraine has been violated and this cannot be the way

to conduct international affairs. China vows to track down those

responsible for an attack at a railway station, which left 29

people dead and more than 100 wounded.

And Man City secure the first silverware of the season after

beating Sunderland at Wembley. Good evening. Ukraine's Prime

Minister has accused Russia of declaring war and says Moscow's

decision to deploy troops across the border means his country is on the

brink of disaster. Russian and Ukrainian soldiers now face each

other at a number of army bases in the Crimea region, after the Russian

Parliament's decision to send in the military. In response, Ukraine has

placed its armed forces on full combat readiness and called up

reservists. From Sevastapol, here's Daniel Sandford.

Russian troops patrolling directly outside one of Ukraine's vital

military bases in Crimea. While the new Ukrainian government called for

a full military mobilisation, Russian soldiers already controlled

most of Crimea without a shot having been fired. And some in the village

nearby came out to welcome them. TRANSLATION: Our heroes. We are our

lives to them and I'm ready to do anything for them. -- they are our

heroes. Behind the walls, vital military equipment which the

Ukrainian stare not use for fear of provoking a stronger reaction from

Moscow. These Ukrainian soldiers are now effectively trapped in their own

base on their own territory. A short while ago, their colonel came out to

ask the Russians to pull back a bit, but so far they have not moved. As

his troops in Crimea stood helplessly in their virtual

prisons, the Ukrainian Prime Minister in Kiev warned his country

was on the brink of disaster. It is not the threat. This is actually the

declaration of war to my country. And we urge President Putin to pull

back his military. In the far north of Crimea, where it joins the rest

of Ukraine, soldiers could be seen in the distance digging defensive

positions. Even the headquarters of Ukraine's Navy in Sebastopol was

under siege. This time from pro-Russian activists. We saw how

sailors were turned away from work as machine gunners watched

helplessly from the rooftops. The man in charge of Ukraine's armed

forces until two days ago called on politicians to solve the crisis. I

am very sorry that Ukrainian soldiers and sailors are hostages of

this situation now. It is very sad. Then some Russian troops turned up

and vandalised the electricity substation right outside the

Ukrainian headquarters. This evening, as more Russian ships

sailed into the harbour, the head of the Ukrainian Navy switched sides.

The crisis in Ukraine is one of the most serious confrontations between

Russia and the West in recent years - a clash of old Cold War rivalries.

Today, the US Secretary of State John Kerry warned that Russia could

be expelled from the G8, while the head of NATO says Moscow's actions

are threatening peace in Europe. Here's our diplomatic correspondent

Bridget Kendall. This isn't just about Crimea any

more. It is about Ukraine as a whole. The pro-Russian crowd cheers

here as Ukrainian government supporters are literally thrown out

of the building. One of several rallies in mainly Russian speaking

cities in eastern Ukraine, where Ukraine's flag was replaced by the

Russian flag on City Hall. One activist from Moscow even filmed

himself doing it. And, as with Crimea, the government in Kiev is

trapped. If it doesn't respond, these eastern cities might slip out

of its control. But any move that provokes a confrontation could give

Russia an excuse to invade. Just across-the-board, Russian forces are

poised and ready for action. -- across the border. Essentially, it

is a massive training exercise but Russia has turned military

manoeuvres into an invasion before when it sent troops into Georgia in

2008. There is a sense of crisis in Russia, too, today. President Putin

now has the right to send troops into Ukraine, says the newsreader, a

senior Kremlin editor. He adds that the Russian president warned

President Obama that if there is any threat to Russian interests, he

wouldn't hesitate to go in. In Washington, it has been called a

brazen act of aggression. It feels suddenly as though the world is on

the brink of an East -West confrontation reminiscent of the

Cold War. Russia needs to think very carefully about the choice it is

making, and there are these macro bands, asset freezes, isolation with

respect to trade, American businesses may also well want to

start thinking twice about whether they want to do business with a

country that behaves like this. We have to recognise the sovereign tree

and integrity of the Ukraine and it has been violated and this cannot be

the way to conduct international affairs. -- sovereignty. In Kiev,

crowds are again filling Independence Square, no longer

celebrating victory but appealing for outside support. But if

President Putin is determined to act, it is hard to see how the West

can stop him. The dangers of this conflict continue to grow.

And Daniel Sandford is in Sevastopol in Crimea. As this crisis deepens,

is it fair to say Ukraine has already lost Crimea? Yes, whereas

stand here it does look as if Crimea is lost. -- where I stand. Ukraine

has lost control of its air bases here and its military bases, and as

a pro-Russian government in power, so the only way the Ukraine could

get Crimea back would be through negotiation with President Putin and

it looks as though the price would be a referendum on whether Crimea

should break away from Ukraine, and then there is the problem of eastern

Ukraine, because although it is possible there could be political

discussions and a good solution could be found to avoid bloodshed,

if the Crimea scenario continues to play itself out in eastern Ukraine,

this could open up a long board of confrontation between East and West

Ukraine, and then the chances of a real shooting war will become quite

high. Thank you. The Chinese authorities have blamed

separatists for a mass stabbing at a railway station in which at least 29

people died and 130 others were wounded. A group of around ten

attackers rushed at passengers in the south- western city of Kunming

yesterday. From there, here's Damian Grammaticas.

Armed police on guard today, ringing Kunming's train station. Incredibly,

travellers were already flooding back in, less than 24 hours after

the murderous rampage here. Ten or more attackers, clad in black and

masked, ran amok. The attackers drew their knives. They began slashing at

people and then chased them. The crowd scattered everywhere. In the

space of just 12 minutes, around 150 people were killed and injured here.

I saw one man and one woman clearly. A policeman walked up to

them. He had no weapon. He shouted, put your nice town. Who are you?

They set up on him. They ran out from there. They had nice 50, 60

centimetres long. People were shouting, we had never harmed you.

Why are you killing us? They didn't care, they killed everyone. -- they

had knives. Adults and children. Chinese authorities say this was

done by terrorist elements from Xinjiang, in China's far west. One

student says one of the attackers ran towards her, stabbing wildly.

She was in the ticket queue when it happened. Xinjiang lies thousands of

miles away on China's border with Pakistan and Afghanistan. Many of

its Muslim Uighurs resent what they see as heavy-handed Chinese control.

Violence here has been getting worse. Dozens died last year. And

now it may be seeping into other parts of China. Last October, China

said this incident in Beijing's Tiananmen Square was an Uighur

terror attack. A car ploughed into a crowd, then burst into flames. Two

tourists and three people in the vehicle died. But this latest

rampage was far more bloody, and what will worry China's authorities

is that, despite the vast funds they are now spending on internal

security, the violence is spreading. The former Northern Ireland

Secretary Peter Hain says pursuing British soldiers involved in the

Bloody Sunday killings is a "waste" of police time. 14 civilians died in

Londonderry in 1972 after soldiers opened fire during a civil rights

march. Mr Hain's comments follow the disclosure that a number of

Republican terror suspects have been sent letters which in effect give

them immunity from prosecution, as part of the Northern Ireland peace

process. In just a few hours' time, Hollywood

will begin hosting its biggest party of the year for the Oscars. American

Hustle and the British film Gravity lead this year's nominations, as our

entertainment correspondent Lizo Mzimba reports from Los Angeles.

For months, it's been a relentless run of red carpets, all building up

to the biggest event of the more. Leading the battalion of Brits

hoping to storm the stage this year is Steve McQueen. I'm really

nervous, but it will be a celebration. It is one occasion

where you have to force yourself to enjoy it. Its main competition comes

from two films. American Hustle and Gravity. The latter was made in

Britain. Whoever ends up winning or losing this will still be seen as a

very strong year for British film. Some nominees like Cate Blanchett,

up for best actress, are considered almost certain to win. I'm just

excited. It is a lovely position to be in, which ever way the penny

falls. Others, like the team behind Philomena, may have a Mormon -- a

more nerve wracking evening. But here is some advice: don't do great

long lists of bank queues. Thank them later, write them a nice note

afterwards and say thank you. In a way, that is more appreciated. Try

to be sex linked and don't cry. -- succinct. For many, winning an Oscar

will be the highlight of their career. Holding back the tears may

be one piece of advice they will not be able to follow.

Now, let's get the sport. The first major piece of silverware

of the football season has been won by Manchester City after beating

Sunderland 3-1 at Wembley. It is the first for the manager who joined the

club in June. Natalie, a disappointing day for

Sunderland. Was it just too big a task for them against this

Manchester City side? History will recall this is a 3-1 win for

Manchester City but that score does not do credit to how well Sunderland

played. For a while it looked like they

might have their day, but ultimately to moments of sheer brilliance from

two expensive individuals proved to be all the difference. It's been a

long time since Wembley heard the Black Cats sing, but they were far

from here just to make up the numbers. City fans were already

previewing celebrations as orderly overwhelming favourites can. After

nine minutes, city were stunned into silence. Sunderland were going to

savour this moment. They were well-organised and

defiant, and what almost in again, but this time unsuccessfully. But if

ever they needed a reminder of the quality Manchester City possess,

this goal showed them. And while Sunderland's defence was still

reeling, they were floored again. Sunderland did not stop fighting,

but right at the end, all hopes were crushed. Manuel Pellegrini was

tasked with winning five trophies when he took over last summer. Just

for Mac to go, then. -- just four. So Sunderland's 41 year wait for a

trophy continues. They are battling relegation in a league. On this

showing though, fans have plenty of reasons to be optimistic.

In the Premier League Tottenham have a lead in their game. Aston Bill are

happy at four goals past Norwich. Just a couple of seconds left in all

three games. England's cricketers are playing in Antigua. They won the

toss and chose to bowl. The West Indies gave a relatively

poor batting performance. Stephen Parry took three wickets on his

Dubuque. England need 160 to win but have lost two wickets already and

are 55 42. Rumour Conroy has a two shot lead as

he prepares to tee off in half an hour's time in the final round in

Florida. He shot a third round of 69 to lead the field going to the final

day. If he wins in Florida it will be his first PGA Tour title since

2012. Ronnie O'Sullivan is playing in the final.

He is seven frames to one ahead with the evening session still to come.

There is more throughout the evening on