3 killed despite Ukraine cease-fire
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ISOLATED clashes were reported in eastern Ukraine yesterday despite a truce with pro-Russian rebels appearing to take hold.
After two days in which neither side had reported any casualties, Kiev said three troops died and seven others were wounded, highlighting the fragility of the February 12 peace deal.
Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said fighting had halted along most of the frontline but there were still clashes in villages around Donetsk airport, one of the most fought-over prizes in the conflict, which fell to the rebels last month.
The latest skirmishes came as the United Nations geared up to discuss the conflict one year after Russia began annexing ports and cities on the peninsula of Crimea.
Russia’s annexation of the peninsula from Ukraine sparked the worst East-West standoff since the Cold War.
A year on, the West is hoping the UN-backed truce deal negotiated by Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France in Minsk can prevent a further escalation.
After an initial setback, caused by a rebel assault on the transport hub of Debaltseve, the deal appeared to be gaining traction.
Both sides said they were continuing to withdraw heavy weapons from along the frontline, a key part of the plan to end 10 months of bloodshed in eastern Ukraine that has cost at least 5,800 lives.
Kiev said it began withdrawing cannons on Thursday, while rebels said they had nearly completed their pullback.
Yesterday, monitors were seen inspecting some two dozen Ukrainian artillery pieces, which were then towed away from the frontline.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko cautioned that the withdrawal was “just a first, test step.” Addressing troops, he said: “At any moment our soldiers are ready to return our weapons to their previous positions and rebuff the enemy.”
The United States and European Union have warned that Russia — which has been battered by successive rounds of sanctions over the unrest in Ukraine as well as falling oil prices — could face fresh economic punishment if the peace process unravels.
Moscow has itself ratcheted up the pressure by warning it could cut off gas supplies to Ukraine — and, by extension, to parts of the EU.
Ukraine and Russia confirmed that they would attend urgent EU-brokered talks in Brussels on Monday to try to resolve a dispute related to Moscow’s move to start direct supplies to rebel-held areas.
Moscow last year cut off gas deliveries to Ukraine before turning the taps back on in December after making cash-strapped Kiev pay in advance for its supplies.
Ukraine says that Russia masterminded the rebellion in the east to punish Kiev for pursing closer ties with the West following the February 2014 ouster of Kremlin-backed President Viktor Yanukovych through street protests. Russia accused the West of fomenting a coup in Kiev and quickly moved to take control of Crimea.
The Kremlin claimed the bloodless annexation was aimed at protecting Russian speakers on the peninsula.
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