Russian lawmakers revoke right to send troops into Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting of the presidential council on science and education at the Kremlin in Moscow, June 23, 2014. REUTERS/Alexei Druzhinin/RIA Novosti/Kremlin

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Russian parliament on Wednesday revoked the right it had granted President Vladimir Putin in March to order a military intervention in Ukraine, where Kiev is struggling with a rebellion by Russian speakers in the east.

A senior lawmaker said the move, which Putin had requested, should be seen as an act of goodwill to help facilitate peace efforts in Ukraine, where Moscow sees itself as the defender of the rights of the large Russian-speaking minority. But he said the authority could be reinstated at short notice.