At Ukrainian Base, Standoff Turns Into Circus
PEREVALNE, Ukraine (AP) -- Just inside the main gate to the military base, four young Ukrainian soldiers stood in the middle of the road, as if somehow they alone could stop what was on the other side.
They were hardly an intimidating group. They were young and unarmed and didn't look like they had ever been anywhere near combat. One, the soldier whose eyes kept blinking nervously, didn't look old enough to shave.
Outside the gate, though, things were different. There were a half-dozen soldiers in unmarked green uniforms, all wearing helmets and body armor, and all carrying automatic weapons.
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Within a few hours, the standoff had become a circus. The international media had arrived, trailing tripods and generators and mobile satellite dishes. An archbishop from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church had come, to pray for peace.
Dozens of people came from the village - really a collection of dirty gray apartment buildings - just around the corner. Young mothers pushed children to the gate in strollers, or held the hands of toddlers. A couple women brought jugs of tea to keep away the evening cold. Lots of young men came, to gawp for a while and then saunter home.
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