U.S. Announces Four-Way Ukraine Talks in Geneva, Slaps Sanctions on Crimea Leaders, Gas Firm

Planned four-way talks on the crisis in Ukraine between the U.S., EU, Russia and Ukrainian government will take place in Geneva on April 17, a U.S. official confirmed Friday, as Washington unveiled sanctions against a number of Crimea breakaway leaders.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will attend the meeting to "continue efforts to de-escalate the situation in Ukraine and find a diplomatic path forward," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.

"The United States is committed to mobilizing the international community in support of Ukraine, and helping the Ukrainian people build the stable, democratic and prosperous country," she added in a statement.

The talks were first mooted at the beginning of the week, but US officials admitted it had been challenging to coordinate the schedules of four ministers.

Kerry is likely to join Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, as well as the European Union's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton.

On the Ukrainian side, it is believed that Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchytsya will attend, but there has been no confirmation of that.

Kerry spoke again by phone Friday with Lavrov and also with Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Psaki said.

The United States said earlier this week that it had only low expectations for the meeting which will be the latest step in a flurry of diplomacy aimed at de-escalating the worst European security crisis in decades.

"I have to say that we don't have high expectations for these talks, but we do believe it is very important to keep that diplomatic door open and will see what they bring," Assistant Secretary Victoria Nuland told lawmakers.

Later on Friday, the United States unveiled sanctions against six of Crimea's breakaway leaders, including the official who signed the deal with Moscow to split the peninsula from Ukraine.

The new Treasury sanctions also targeted the former vice speaker of Ukraine's parliament who helped pave the way towards a referendum in Crimea on separating from Ukraine, and a gas company whose assets were seized by the Crimean parliament and are now being managed by Moscow.

Earlier on Friday, Putin said the United States had no business interfering in Russia's talks with Europe over Kiev's debt.

"We certainly guarantee the fulfillment of our obligations before our European customers in full," Putin said in comments released by the Kremlin. "The issue is not about us, the issue is about securing transit through Ukraine."

Putin on Thursday sent a letter to the heads of 18 European countries that receive Russian gas, saying Moscow could turn off supplies because Kiev has so far failed to repay its $2.2 billion energy bill.

He urged immediate talks, suggesting that Europe help pay Ukraine's debt.

Washington condemned Russia's efforts to use energy as "a tool of coercion against Ukraine."

But Putin on Friday suggested that Washington had no business meddling in European affairs.

"It's strange because reading other people's letters is not good. I did not write to them, I wrote to the consumers of gas in Europe," he said at a meeting of his Security Council.

"Everyone is used to the fact that our American friends are eavesdropping but peeping is really not nice (too)," he quipped.

Putin said the fact that Ukraine has not yet settled its gas debts was "absolutely intolerable."

The Russian strongman also suggested that Washington follow up its promises of support with real action.

"Pies on the Maidan will not be enough," Putin said. "This is not enough to deter the Ukrainian economy from slipping into complete chaos."

The assistant U.S. secretary of state, Victoria Nuland, was seen in December distributing cookies to pro-Western Ukrainian protesters in Kiev in a gesture of support.

Moscow has repeatedly slammed Washington for publicly supporting the protesters who in February ousted pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych from power.

Meanwhile, Group of 20 finance ministers and central bank chiefs said Friday they were alert to risks to the global economy from the Ukraine crisis in a draft statement at talks in Washington.

"We are monitoring the economic situation in Ukraine, mindful of any risk to economic and financial stability," said the draft seen by Agence France Presse.

The draft confirmed the concerns that tensions over Ukraine are causing a stir in the leading 20 powers, which include the United States, Europe's major countries and Russia.

The International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the U.S. and European Union have pledged some $27 billion to shore up the Ukrainian economy, but threatening posturing by Russia on the country's eastern border has raised the risks for that plan.

"We are monitoring the economic situation in Ukraine, mindful of any risks to economic and financial stability," the G20 said in the draft.

The group praised the IMF and World Bank for leading the economic rescue of the country.