Contents tagged with War in Ukraine

  • Separatists demand withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from contested territories

    Casting doubt on the effectiveness of negotiations aimed at ending the conflict in eastern Ukraine, skirmishes continue along the contact line dividing separatist-held territories from the rest of Ukraine.

    Russia’s Interfax news agency reported that separatist leaders have demanded that the Ukrainian military withdraw from the territories recently taken by government forces.

    According to the news agency, representatives of the separatist republics, Denis Pushilin and Vladyslav Deinego, issued …

  • Ukrainian Armed Forces: The situation in the Donbas continues to deteriorate

    The headquarters of the Ukrainian Armed Forces announced that the situation in the Donbas has deteriorated significantly over the last several days, Glavnoe reported.

    “Yesterday, pro-Russian gangs opened fire on the positions of the Ukrainian defenders 15 times,” the headquarters wrote on Facebook.

    It was reported that Ukrainian positions near Avdiivka were attacked by separatists using rocket propelled grenades and small arms.

    According to the Ukrainian headquarters, separatists also …

  • Washington: The majority of ceasefire violations in the Donbas occur on the territory of separatists

    The OSCE confirms that the majority of ceasefire violations in eastern Ukraine occur on the territory that is under the separatists’ control, the Unites States Deputy Secretary of State, Antony Blinken stated.

    The U.S Ambassador to Ukraine, Geoffrey Pyatt, quoted Blinken on Twitter as saying that the “OSCE confirms that the majority of ceasefire violations in eastern Ukraine occur on the territory that is under separatists’ control.”  The White House press service also quoted Blinken as saying …

  • US accuses separatists of ceasefire violations in eastern Ukraine

    The State Department's Deputy Spokesperson, Mark Toner, stated that pro-Russian separatists are responsible high number of ceasefire violations in the Donbas.

    “We are certainly concerned at the level of violence in eastern Ukraine which has reached its highest level since the ceasefire agreements in September,” Toner said.

    He emphasized that about 30,000 ceasefire violations were registered in April; which he described as “a huge number.” At the same time, as Toner noted, “The OSCE reports …

  • Srelkov confirms that Russian police opened investigation into his activities in the Donbas

    Igor Strelkov (a.k.a. Igor Girkin) confirmed that the recent visit of two policemen to his mother's house was indeed part of a police investigation against him.

    "It turns out that the visit of the two police representatives had very solid and lawful reasons. The Prosecutor’s office of St. Petersburg has started a preliminary investigation," Strelkov wrote on his LiveJournal page.

    The investigation was initiated by lawyer Arkadiy Chapligin, who filed a report after Strelkov publically admitted …

  • Seperatist leader: An armed OSCE mission in the Donbas will be considered military aggression against us

    The leaders of the so-called People's Donetsk Republic (DPR) stated that any armed OSCE mission in eastern Ukraine will be viewed as military aggression against the self-declared republic.

    This position was stated by the leader of the so-called DPR, Aleksandr Zakharchenko, at a media briefing. It was later published by separatist media sources.

    "If they dare to show up here armed, I will consider it to be a military invasion. They only have a mandate to be a monitory mission," he stated. …

  • Russia allegedly opens investigation into Igor Strelkov

    According to Igor Strelkov (a.k.a. Igor Girkin), two people, claiming to be representatives of the Russian police, came to his mother's home and inquired about him.

    "Is there a limit to human idiocy? Today [April 22] two 'policemen' came to my mother and stated that I killed 2 people in Saint Petersburg and that a police report was filed against me. They made my mother sign a document stating that she hadn't seen me" he wrote on his VKontakte page (Russian social network).

    Strelkov said that …

  • Obama calls for a resolution to the war in Ukraine

    During a joint press conference with UK Prime Minister David Cameron, US President Barack Obama called for a resolution to the war in Ukraine.

    “We have to continue to invest in NATO so that we can meet our overseas commitments, from Afghanistan to the Aegean.  We have to resolve the conflict in the Ukraine and reassure allies who are rightly concerned about Russian aggression,” the US President stated.

    Obama also stressed that all NATO member states need to work towards contributing more of …

  • Ukrainian Forces tighten their grip on Dokuchaievsk

    The 72nd motorized bridge of the Ukrainian Forces has almost completely encircled the city of Dokuchaievsk.

    Several weeks ago, reports began emerging on social media that the 72nd brigade took control of the strategic heights around the area and is now facing the city from three directions.

    Some social media users reported that posters, supposedly issued by the Ukrainian Forces, started appearing around the city, calling on the separatist fighters to surrender.

    Reports of the encirclement …

  • Ukrainian journalist: The situation in Avdiivka is becoming more tense

    In his interview to the Ukrainian Hromadske Radio, Journalist Roman Bochkala, who spent a significant amount of time with the Ukrainian armed forces near Avdiivka, described the situation on the front line.

    He noted that the situation in Avdiivka is becoming more tense. "They [the separatists] are doing everything they can to take the territory back. They are absolutely reckless at sending their soldiers at our positions and this leads to numerous losses on their side. Hundreds of them have …