The European Union may be forced for legal reasons to drop sanctions on some members of the ousted Ukraine regime of president Victor Yanukovych, an EU official said Friday.

With an assertive Russia next door, Sweden has started to beef up its military after a decade of downsizing, but a credible deterrent may take years to achieve, analysts warn.

In one of the most dramatic steps since the end of the Cold War, Sweden has brought back the option of using reservists to boost its military force, making no attempt to hide the fact that the main motivation behind the move is Russia.

Russia on Friday expressed outrage at the U.S. Senate's approval of a bill to potentially provide lethal military aid to Ukraine in its fight against Kremlin-backed separatists, and to impose fresh sanctions on Moscow.

NATO accused Russia Friday of refusing any "genuine dialogue" about its increased military activity, saying there would been no contact between army brass during the seven months of crisis in Ukraine.

The U.S.-led alliance has reported an upsurge in Russian military flights, especially near its Baltic state members, but also further afield around Norway, Britain and far south into the Atlantic.

Estonia's defense minister said a Russian plane had violated its airspace over the weekend, as all three Baltic states and Poland expressed concern over unprecedented Russian military activity in the region.

Russia's actions in Ukraine, including its March annexation of the Crimean peninsula, have spooked neighboring Poland and Baltic trio Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania -- all new NATO members formerly dominated by Moscow.

Ukraine says it will conscript 40,000 soldiers in 2015 and double its military budget as it tries to meet the demands of an ongoing conflict against pro-Russian rebels in its eastern provinces. 

"We foresee calling up 40,000 men in 2015 and training 10,500 people who will do their service (as professional soldiers)," Defence Minister Stepan Poltorak told parliament. 

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov resumed on Friday talks with Lebanese officials on the presidential impasse following his return from Syria.

Bogdanov met early Friday with Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi in Bkirki.

President Petro Poroshenko on Friday said a "real" ceasefire was in place in Ukraine after the first 24 hours in seven months without a military casualty, although he admitted the truce was fragile.

"I have positive news. Today is the first 24 hours for seven months... when we have a real ceasefire in Ukraine," he said in a speech during a trip to Australia.

Poland's defense minister said Thursday he was concerned by the extent of Russia's recent military activity over the Baltic sea.

Russia on Thursday called a damning U.S. report on the torture of detainees "shocking" and urged global pressure to force Washington to release still-classified details on rights violations.

Russia, which has always bristled at what it sees as Washington's incessant attempts to lecture Moscow on human rights, seized on the latest opportunity to say the Kremlin's former Cold War foe and its allies were no models of democracy.