Russia prepares reprisals against Ukraine over Crimea blackout

A single light illuminates a room during a blackout at a residential building in Simferopol, Crimea November 24, 2015. REUTERS/Pavel Rebrov

MOSCOW/KIEV (Reuters) - Russia said on Tuesday it would cut off gas supplies to Ukraine and threatened to halt coal deliveries, ratcheting up a dispute over a power blackout in Crimea at a time when a ceasefire between Kiev and separatist rebels is fraying.

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak accused the Ukrainian authorities of deliberately refusing to help rebuild power lines to Russia-annexed Crimea, which were blown up by unknown saboteurs over the weekend.