NOVANEWS
Members of the Ukrainian armed forces ride on a military vehicle near Debaltseve, eastern Ukraine
The European Union has set sanctions against eastern Ukrainian rebels and Russians.
On the first day of a cease-fire between Kiev and rebel forces in eastern Ukraine Sunday, there was still extensive fighting.
The Ukrainian government accused the pro-Russian rebels of attacking the military 112 times in the first 24 hours of the cease-fire, mostly in Debaltseve. The rebels have said that they do not consider Debaltseve to part of the cease-fire.
“The Ukraine armed forces are fully observing the ceasefire regime but unfortunately in response we have received 112 … attacks in the past 24 hours from the terrorists of Donetsk and Lugansk,” said Ukraine’s foreign minister Pavlo Klimkin.
The rebels claim that the Ukrainian military have been shelling the hotly contested Donetsk airport.
Vladislav Seleznyov, a Ukrainian military spokesperson, told AFP that “There is no question at the moment of us withdrawing heavy weapons” from the battle grounds because they were under attack by the pro-Russian militants.
The cease-fire was the result of an agreement reached between Russia, Ukraine, France and Britain last week and was supposed to begin on Sunday. A similar agreement came out of peace talks in September. That cease-fire fell apart within the first days of its implementation.
The European Union has set sanctions against pro-Russian rebel officials in Ukraine, as well as two Russian deputy defense ministers, for allegedly sending Russian troops and military support to the Ukrainian rebels. They are now subject to visa bans and their assets are frozen throughout the EU.
The Russian foreign ministry said these sanctions showed that “again the EU preferred to walk on a leash behind the ‘party of war’ in Kiev … Such decisions look especially ridiculous against the background of the Minsk [cease-fire] accords.”
The Ukrainian government accused the pro-Russian rebels of attacking the military 112 times in the first 24 hours of the cease-fire, mostly in Debaltseve. The rebels have said that they do not consider Debaltseve to part of the cease-fire.
“The Ukraine armed forces are fully observing the ceasefire regime but unfortunately in response we have received 112 … attacks in the past 24 hours from the terrorists of Donetsk and Lugansk,” said Ukraine’s foreign minister Pavlo Klimkin.
The rebels claim that the Ukrainian military have been shelling the hotly contested Donetsk airport.
Vladislav Seleznyov, a Ukrainian military spokesperson, told AFP that “There is no question at the moment of us withdrawing heavy weapons” from the battle grounds because they were under attack by the pro-Russian militants.
The cease-fire was the result of an agreement reached between Russia, Ukraine, France and Britain last week and was supposed to begin on Sunday. A similar agreement came out of peace talks in September. That cease-fire fell apart within the first days of its implementation.
The European Union has set sanctions against pro-Russian rebel officials in Ukraine, as well as two Russian deputy defense ministers, for allegedly sending Russian troops and military support to the Ukrainian rebels. They are now subject to visa bans and their assets are frozen throughout the EU.
The Russian foreign ministry said these sanctions showed that “again the EU preferred to walk on a leash behind the ‘party of war’ in Kiev … Such decisions look especially ridiculous against the background of the Minsk [cease-fire] accords.”
