Fighting rages as Ukraine peace deal hopes fade
Print Edition
Pro-Russian rebels bombarded government troops encircled in east Ukraine yesterday and a plan for both sides to pull back their heavy guns stalled, pushing a fragile peace deal closer to collapse.
A witness near the front line said artillery rounds rocked the town of Debaltseve every five seconds and black smoke rose skyward, despite a truce that has eased fighting in many areas since the European-brokered deal took effect on Sunday.
The rebels said they had captured parts of Debaltseve, which sits on a strategic railway junction, and that some Ukrainian soldiers had surrendered, but Kiev denied this.
鈥淎t the moment there is fierce fighting on the outskirts of the town. There are clashes around the station. But our forces are holding their positions and they are completely within their rights to open fire in response,鈥 Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said.
Hopes that the deal reached last Thursday would end a conflict that has killed more than 5,000 people were always low after a rebel advance in January scuppered an earlier truce.
But the ferocity of the fighting at Debaltseve was unexpected and has heightened concerns in Kiev and the West that the separatists and Russian President Vladimir Putin want to cement the latest rebel gains before peace takes hold.
Monitors from the OSCE security group were expected to try to reach the besieged town after Germany said it had agreed steps with the leaders of Russia and Ukraine to ensure they had 鈥渇ree access鈥 in the east.
But a new call by Berlin for peace and for the withdrawal of heavy weapons to start as scheduled yesterday under the peace deal, reached at all-night talks in the Belarussian capital Minsk on Thursday, fell largely on deaf ears.
鈥淲e do not have the right (to stop fighting for Debaltseve). It鈥檚 even a moral thing. It鈥檚 internal territory,鈥 said Denis Pushilin, a separatist representative.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 娌狪CP璇侊細娌狪CP澶05050403鍙-1
- |
- 浜掕仈缃戞柊闂讳俊鎭湇鍔¤鍙瘉锛31120180004
- |
- 缃戠粶瑙嗗惉璁稿彲璇侊細0909346
- |
- 骞挎挱鐢佃鑺傜洰鍒朵綔璁稿彲璇侊細娌瓧绗354鍙
- |
- 澧炲肩數淇′笟鍔＄粡钀ヨ鍙瘉锛氭勃B2-20120012
Copyright 漏 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
