East Ukraine clashes leave 4 Kiev soldiers dead
Heavy clashes between government soldiers and pro-Russia forces have left four Kiev troops dead in eastern Ukraine.
Kiev’s military spokesman, Andriy Lysenko, said 15 troops were also wounded in the heavy shelling that took place in the volatile Lugansk and Donetsk regions.
There are daily exchanges of fire in eastern Ukraine in violation of the ceasefire deal dubbed Minsk II. The escalation of violence has led to the highest rate of casualties in over two weeks.
The latest round of talks overseen by the European Union is set to start in the Belarusian capital of Minsk where representatives of Ukraine, Russia and pro-Russians will hold talks on implementing the Minsk truce agreed in February. The meeting is expected to urge a withdrawal of heavy weapons from eastern Ukraine as a way to end the conflict
Both the government and pro-Russians have not completed a pull-back of heavy weapons, according to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
Ukraine’s warring sides reached a ceasefire deal, dubbed Minsk II, at a summit in the Belarusian capital city of Minsk in February. The agreement introduced measures such as a ceasefire, the pullout of heavy weapons and constitutional reform in Ukraine by the end of the year.
The shaky deal has, however, failed to end the deadly violence in the mainly Russian-speaking regions of eastern Ukraine, with both sides trading accusations of breach the ceasefire agreement.
Lugansk and Donetsk in eastern Ukraine have witnessed deadly clashes between the pro-Russia forces and the Ukrainian army ever since Kiev launched its military campaign in April 2014 against pro-Russians in the region.
According to UN figures, about 7,000 people have been killed in the conflict.
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