Russia revokes army intervention in Ukraine

The upper house of Russia's parliament voted Wednesday to revoke a resolution approving military intervention in Ukraine at the request of President Vladimir Putin.

The issue was discussed in a Federation Council plenary meeting, with Putin's request being carried 153 votes to one, Xinhua reported.

The decision was "a goodwill gesture" made to facilitate the negotiation process in Ukraine, said Viktor Ozerov, head of the Council's Defence and Security Committee.

Putin asked Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko Tuesday to scrap the March 1 resolution, which approved Putin's original request to use armed forces in Ukraine until the "political-social situation in the country is normalised".