War in Donbass

Ukraine slips deeper into war as hostilities continue

DONETSK, BELGRADE -- The city of Donetsk has been under almost constant fire after the breakdown in the Minsk negotiations, while the situation near Debaltsevo remains critical.

Thirteen Ukrainian soldiers and at least seven civilians have been killed in fighting in the past 24 hours, Kyiv authorities said on Jan. 31, reporting widespread clashes with Russian-backed separatists a day after peace talks collapsed. 

"Fighting continues across all sections of the frontline," Kyiv military spokesman Volodymyr Polyovy said in a briefing. 

OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic called for an immediate ceasefire on Saturday, as the situation in Ukraine has rapidly deteriorated in the past 24 hours.

Dacic's call comes after more than 20 civilians have been killed and many more injured in the latest clashes between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russian separatists, the Guardian reports.

MINSK - OSCE efforts aimed at calling a meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group and pro-Russian activists from eastern Ukraine still have not produced results, and OSCE Chair and Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivica Dacic pointed to the importance of the talks and called on all relevant sides to organise a meeting as soon as possible, states the release issued on Friday.

BELGRADE - The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic, has reiterated his call to all sides in the Ukrainian conflict to return to the negotiating table, the international organisation said in a statement.

OSCE condemns "use of heavy weapons"

VIENNA, NEW YORK -- The OSCE Permanent Council held a special meeting on Monday concerning the deterioration of the situation in eastern Ukraine.

The meeting concerned "especially the clashes in civilian parts of Mariupol," Tanjug reported.

VIENNA - The OSCE Permanent Council held a special meeting on Monday concerning the deterioration of the situation in eastern Ukraine, especially the clashes in the civilian parts of Mariupol, and Serbia condemned the use of heavy weaponry.

Serbia, as the OSCE chair, condemned the use of heavy weaponry in civilian areas and called for an immediate stop to hostilities on the ground.

President Vladimir Putin sharply ramped up his anti-Western rhetoric on Jan. 26, accusing the Ukrainian army of being "NATO's foreign legion" whose main purpose was to contain Russia.
      

Putin slams Ukrainian forces as "NATO legion"

ST. PETERSBURG, KIEV -- Ukrainian armed forces are in essence a NATO legion, which is not serving the country's national interests, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said.

Nearly 500 coal miners in Ukraine's war-torn east were trapped on Jan. 26 after their pit lost power when a shell hit an electricity substation.
      
The accident occurred in rebel-controlled Donetsk city's Zasyadko coal mine -- one of eastern Europe's largest, where the same type of incident briefly trapped 300 miners on January 11.