• Putin promises to respect results of Ukraine election

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia - President Vladimir Putin pledged Friday that Russia will respect the results of Ukraine's presidential election, a strong indication the Kremlin wants to cool down the crisis. But new violence and rebel vows to block the balloting made prospects for peace appear distant.

New clashes were reported between pro-Russia separatists and government forces in eastern Ukraine as Kiev continued an offensive to try to halt the uprising.

Associated Press reporters saw two dead Ukrainian soldiers near the village of Karlivka, and another body near a rebel checkpoint, both in the Donetsk region. A rebel leader said 16 more people died Friday in fighting there - 10 soldiers, four rebels and two civilians - but there was no immediate way to verify his statement.

In Kiev, the Defense Ministry said 20 insurgents were killed in an attack on a convoy of government troops Thursday by about 500 rebels, the largest insurgent assault yet reported.

• General behind Thailand coup a prickly personality

BANGKOK - The general who led the military takeover of Thailand is known as an ardent defender of the monarchy, an adversary of the former prime minister at the center of the nation's political crisis, and a prickly personality prone to snap at unwanted questions.

In orchestrating the coup Thursday, Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha was exercising what is almost a traditional prerogative of Thai army commanders: The country has endured 12 successful coups since becoming a constitutional monarchy in 1932.

He spent most of his career in the 21st Infantry Regiment, known as the Queen's Guard, and has shown particular loyalty to Queen Sirikit, consort of 86-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej. He played a key role in the 2006 coup that toppled Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, but became commander in chief of the Royal Thai Army after Thaksin's sister Yingluck rose to power.

A court threw Yingluck out of office this month, and the coup dislodged what was left of her administration. The military on Friday summoned Yingluck and her temporary replacement, Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan, and has detained Cabinet ministers, as well as protest leaders on both sides of the unrest that has wracked the nation for more than six months.

• Poll: Sign-up success doesn't help Obamacare

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama celebrated when sign-ups for his health care law topped 8 million, far exceeding expectations after a slipshod launch. Most Americans, however, remain unimpressed.

A new Associated Press-GfK poll finds that public opinion continues to run deeply negative on the Affordable Care Act, Obama's signature effort to cover the uninsured. Forty-three percent oppose the law, compared with just 28 percent in support.

The pattern illustrates why the health care law remains a favored target for Republicans seeking a Senate majority in the midterm elections.

The poll does have a bright spot for the administration: Those who signed up for coverage aren't reeling from sticker shock. Most said they found premiums in line with what they expected, or even lower.

But even that was diminished by another finding: More than one-third of those who said they or someone in their household tried to enroll, were ultimately unable to do so. For the White House, it's an uncomfortable reminder of the technical problems that paralyzed the HealthCare.gov website for weeks after it went live last fall.

• British yacht found overturned in Atlantic Ocean

BOSTON - A U.S. Navy warship located the overturned hull of a British yacht on Friday, a week after it went missing in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, but there was no sign of its crew as rescuers called off their search.

The Coast Guard said a helicopter from the warship spotted the hull in the afternoon, roughly 1,000 miles off the coast of Massachusetts. A small boat crew confirmed it bore the name of the 39-foot Cheeki Rafiki.

The yacht had not deployed its life raft, Coast Guard officials said. Underwater images captured by a Navy swimmer showed the raft still stowed in its storage space. The pictures had been shared with the crew's families, the Coast Guard said.

The Coast Guard halted the active search at midnight local time.

"It is with sincere compassion for the families of these four men that our thoughts and prayers are with them all during this difficult time," said Capt. Anthony Popiel, 1st U.S. Coast Guard District Chief of Response.

- The Associated Press