News / More

Three soldiers killed in eastern Ukraine clashes

Tuesday, 12 May 2015 5:32 PM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 12 May 2015 5:32 PM ]

Ukrainian army soldiers resupply their battalion at the gate of Debaltseve, in the Donetsk region, on February 3, 2015. (© AFP)

At least three Ukrainian soldiers have been killed and one injured after clashes broke out between Kiev’s troops and pro-Russia forces in the country’s east despite a ceasefire deal.

On Tuesday, Ukrainian military spokesperson Andriy Lysenko said the situation in the conflict zone was still tense.

“Over the past 24 hours three Ukrainian soldiers died and one was injured in fighting,” Lysenko said.

Both sides have been accusing one another of violating a cease fire agreement reached in February.

Ukraine’s warring sides reached a truce deal, known as Minsk II, at a summit attended by the leaders of Russia, France, and Germany in the Belarusian capital city of Minsk in February.

The AFP photo shows pro-Russia forces standing outside a house on February 1, 2015 after it was damaged by shelling in Makiivka in the suburbs of the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk.

The agreement introduced measures such as a ceasefire, which commenced on February 15, the pullout of heavy weapons, and constitutional reform in Ukraine by the end of the year. Although the peace deal has dampened much of the fighting in Ukraine’s volatile provinces, it has failed to halt violence at key hotspots.

On May 6, Ukrainian military sources said five Ukrainian soldiers had been killed and more than 10 others wounded in similar clashes between the two sides.

Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said 7,000 civilians and 1,657 Ukrainian troops had lost their lives in the country’s conflict. He added that some 1,000 people remained unaccounted for.

Donetsk and Luhansk, the two mainly Russian-speaking regions, have witnessed deadly clashes between pro-Moscow forces and the Ukrainian army since Kiev launched military operations in April 2014 to crush pro-Russians in the region.

SZH/MKA

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk

Ukraine