Minsk II

French President Francois Hollande said Feb. 5 he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel would visit Kyiv and Moscow in a fresh push for peace in Ukraine, but warned diplomacy "cannot go on indefinitely".
      

At least 12 civilians and 5 Ukrainian troops have been killed in the past 24 hours in war-ravaged eastern Ukraine.

Full-blown fighting between Russian-backed separatists and government forces erupted 
anew at the start of January following a month of relative tranquility.

The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) has again called for restraint of all parties involved in the conflict in eastern Ukraine following new killing of civilians in the Donetsk region.

The leader of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic Alexander Zakharchenko announced that his troops are on the offensive and the separatists are unwilling to hold truce talks with Ukraine.

Zakharchenko said that his forces, which are in control of the city of Donetsk, will push the front line back to the borders of the Donetsk region, the BBC reports.

OSCE calls for immediate ceasefire in Ukraine

BELGRADE -- The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) participating states have adopted a declaration calling for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine.

The document adopted on Tuesday also called for the full implementation of the Minsk agreement.

VIENNA/BELGRADE - The participating states of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) adopted a declaration Tuesday calling for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and the full implementation of the Minsk agreements.

There has been heavy fighting in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk as government forces have launched a counter-attack on the pro-Russian separatists.

Government spokesman said that the army has retaken most of the area surrounding the airport, which is of highly symbolic and strategic value, the BBC reports.

Ukrainian troops launched a "mass operation" overnight retaking almost all the territory of Donetsk airport in eastern Ukraine lost to separatists in recent weeks, military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said on Jan. 18.
   

German Chancellor Angela Merkel told Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone on Jan. 10 that a four-way summit to discuss the situation in eastern Ukraine would not take place until there was real progress on the Minsk peace plan.
   

Six dead in eastern Ukraine in 24 hours

KIEV -- Six persons - four Ukrainian soldiers and two civilians - have been killed in the fighting in eastern Ukraine in the past 24 hours.

Spokesman for the Ukrainian military Andriy Lisenko confirmed this during a news conference on Friday, saying that eight more soldiers were wounded during the same period of time.