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SIMFEROPOL, Ukraine (AP) — A special U.N. envoy has ended his mission in Ukraine's Crimea region, after U.N. officials say he was threatened by ten to 15 armed men who ordered him to leave the region. Officials say the confrontation began as Robert Serry was leaving naval headquarters, and it continued at a cafe. They say he was then driven to the airport by the men, and flew to Ukraine's capital to continue his fact-finding mission. Serry had initially declined to go to Crimea after consulting with authorities there, but the U.N. says he later decided it was important to visit the peninsula -- much of which has been under the control of Russian troops since last weekend.
PARIS (AP) — Western diplomats have tried but failed to bring together the Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers for a meeting today in Paris. The hope was that such a meeting could have helped start resolving the crisis in Ukraine's Crimea region. Still, Secretary of State John Kerry says he feels some small successes were made in negotiations with each side. Kerry met three times with Russia's Sergey Lavrov to try to broker an agreement on Ukraine.
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks have finished the day pretty much where they started after a report of modest hiring gains at U.S. businesses failed to excite investors. The S&P 500 finished a fraction of a point lower -- after closing at an all-time high yesterday. The Dow lost 35 points, but the Nasdaq composite edged up six points. Payroll processor ADP said U.S. businesses added 139,000 jobs last month, up slightly from January.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans whose individual health insurance policies don't meet the requirements of the new health care law will now have two extra years before they have to give up those policies. The extension announced today by the Obama administration helps defuse a political problem for Democrats in tough re-election battles this fall.
WASHIINGTON (AP) — The White House isn't saying whether it will push for a second vote in the Senate on President Barack Obama's choice to lead the Justice Department's Civil Rights division. The nomination of Debo Adegbile (DAY'-boh uh-DAYG'-bih-lay) was blocked today, as eight Democrats joined with Republicans to deny him even the simple majority needed under new procedures the Democrats put in place last year. His opponents focused on his involvement in the legal case of a man convicted in the murder of a Philadelphia policeman years ago.
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