Ukraine forces, rebels accuse each other of fresh attacks

Kyiv: Ukraine’s armed forces have accused Moscow-backed rebels of launching a huge new wave of attacks that have intensified fears of a Russian invasion of its Western neighbour.

The joint military command for east Ukraine reported 66 exchanges of fire by yesterday morning – a high number compared to recent stages of the conflict – while the rebels called the situation “critical”.

The statement said the rebels had resorted to using banned 82 and 120 millimetre-calibre mortar shells in towns across the front running in the eastern regions of Lugansk and Donetsk.

“There have been no losses among members of the armed forces as a result of the enemy’s attacks..

“The armed forces control the situation and continue to perform their mission to rebuff and contain the armed aggression of the Russian Federation,” it added.

Moscow formally denies being involved in the conflict and calls it Ukrainian internal affairs.

But monitors from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) security body have reported regular shipments of Russian weapons across the border throughout the eight-year war.

The OSCE reported 870 ceasefire violations across the conflict zone in its latest report on Friday, which referred to incidents on Thursday.

“In recent days, the OSCE Special Monitoring to Ukraine has observed a dramatic increase in kinetic activity along the contact line in eastern Ukraine,” the OSCE said.

Meanwhile, a Ukrainian soldier was killed in clashes with Moscowbacked rebels in the separatist east, the army said.

“As a result of a shelling attack, one Ukrainian soldier received a fatal shrapnel wound,” it said. — AFP