Civil war in Ukraine: News & discussion

[Hindustani78]

Thursday, June 11. DONBAS — In the course of the working trip to Donetsk oblast, President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko has examined the construction of fortifications. The Head of State had no serious remarks regarding the construction.

According to the President, due to the Minsk agreements, Ukraine got time to catch breath and carry out measures on the enhancement of defence.

The President has informed that the construction of overall about 300 fortifications was planned. 100 fortified centres have already been completed. This work is being carried out by the Armed Forces in close interaction with local administrations. Each of 21 regional state administrations fulfills its share of work. “The entire Ukraine is building the defence line,” Petro Poroshenko emphasized.

The President has noted the unprecedented character of the volume and pace of the construction. The construction is planned to be finished by the middle of July. The first project has been amended several times in accordance with new engineering solutions. According to him, the hardest part was to carry out work on the first defence line.

Servicemen of a detached special forces unit undergo training at Dnipropetrovsk military range. Under control and command of experienced instructors, the soldiers enhance combat skills in tactical, firearms, special, engineering, medical training, etc. and train in combat-oriented conditions.

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2015...ukraine-crisis-casualties.html?ref=world&_r=0

KIEV — Three civilians and two Ukrainian soldiers were killed in eastern Ukraine within 24 hours up to midday on Thursday, Kiev's military said, further eroding a four-month-old ceasefire in the separatist conflict.

The truce brokered by the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France has stemmed large-scale fighting but regular skirmishes near Donetsk claim lives almost daily on both sides, and international monitors said they feared a bigger flare-up.

The two Ukrainian soldiers were killed and 13 others wounded by pro-Russian separatists using heavy weapons in violation of the February ceasefire, a military spokesman said in Kiev.

The three civilians were killed on Wednesday night in a mortar attack near Gorlivka, which is in separatist-held territory north of the regional hub of Donetsk. The military and the rebels blamed each other for the attack.

A spokesman for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe spokesman, Michael Bociurkiw, said the situation had stabilized following heavy fighting on June 3 between government forces and separatists at Maryinka, 23 km (14 miles) west of Donetsk, that tore at the tenuous truce.

But relocation of personnel and weapons in the area meant "the normal pattern of violence has reasserted itself ... the threat of a sudden flare-up still remains", Bociurkiw said.

Despite assertions to the contrary, neither side has completed the withdrawal of heavy weapons as agreed in the four-power talks last February in Minsk, Belarus, said Bociurkiw.

The Minsk truce deal is touted by all sides as the basis for reaching a peace settlement in a conflict which erupted in April, 2014, after Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea region and which has cost more than 6,400 lives according to U.N. figures.

But the United States, its Western allies and Kiev accuse Russia of failing to implement the Minsk agreement by keeping its troops in Ukraine and arming the rebels.

Moscow, which denies direct involvement in the conflict, has taken the side of the separatists in accusing Ukrainian forces of attacking rebel positions in urban areas in violation of the Minsk agreement.

 

[Hindustani78]

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko pays tribute to the residents of Mariupol, who were killed in shelling on January 24, 2015 (UNIAN photo)

 

[gau8av]

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko pays tribute to the residents of Mariupol, who were killed in shelling on January 24, 2015 (UNIAN photo)

wonder how much vodka he's had when this pic was taken...

 

[Galad]

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko pays tribute to the residents of Mariupol, who were killed in shelling on January 24, 2015 (UNIAN photo)

Shelling done from position of Kiev forces(neo-nazis from "Azov" openly admitted it). Need to do much better work -none is believing lies of your Kiev masters.
And another big company " Ukrainian Coal" is about to be declared bankrupt .Created in 2003 with goal-buying the coal from state owned shafts and selling it after to various electricity producing companies . Ukraine needs to have 3,5 mln. tones of coal for the winter - now in warehouse there is just 1 mnl.tones.No money to buy coal and now government of "our man " Yats wants to finish the company .

 

[vostok]

"our man " Yats - The Boy Who Cried Wolf

 

[Hindustani78]

In Rivne oblast units of territorial defence battalion undergo operational coordination | Міністерство оборони України

Friday, June 12. RIVNE OBLAST — The units of territorial defence battalion undergo operational coordination.

Servicemen have already had the individual training and now undergo the operational coordination of platoons.

There are 6 heads of village councils, 5 PMs of regional, municipal and village councils, 14 participants of combat operations, headmasters, journalists etc. among those who undergo the field drills.

The infantry battalion is designed to protect and defend the State Border in Rivne oblast. During the drills, the participants learnt to use Zu-23-2 antiaircraft mounts and 82 mm mortars. They underwent firearms training (small arms, grenade launchers and anti-tank weapon, grenades).

After these drills, the soldiers will come back home.

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Over the course of the exercise watched the head of Sumy Regional State Administration Mykola Klochko, Deputy Chief of Staff Command of the Land Force of Ukraine Major-General Nikolai Popelskyy, Deputy Commissioner of Sumy regional military colonel Sergey Shulyakov, district and city military commissioners and chairmen of district state administrations.

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[Hindustani78]

In Chernihiv garrison held scientific seminar dedicated to solving issues concerning the Armed Forces and other security agencies Ukraine real estate.

In this event, held at the initiative of the leadership of the Presidential Administration of Ukraine, attended by officers of the State Scientific Testing Center of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (c. Chernigov) and the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, representatives of local authorities and heads of the enterprises in the region.

 

[Hindustani78]

In Chernihiv region culminated command post exercise of territorial defense. These representatives were involved in military commissariat, experienced military instructors and military service who formed a detachment of territorial defense in the area.During training at one of the training grounds of military service conducted practical training on fire, tactical, medical training and firing small arms. Moreover, brawl mouth and newly platoon detachment performed tasks on important sites of the regional

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Ten Ukrainian soldiers wounded in Donbas conflict zone in last day| Ukrinform
KYIV, June 12 /Ukrinform/. During the last day no casualties among Ukrainian servicemen have been reported, ten soldiers have been wounded in the area of the anti-terrorist operation in Donbas as a result of hostilities and military clashes.

Spokesman for the Presidential Administration on the anti-terrorist operation, Colonel Andriy Lysenko said this at a briefing in Kyiv on Friday, an Ukrinform correspondent reported.

"Over the past day, fortunately, no our soldiers were killed, another ten were injured as a result of military clashes," he said.

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Maryinka shelled again: militants use mortars, self-propelled artillery systems| Ukrinform
KYIV, June 12 /Ukrinform/Pro-Russian militants have resumed shelling ATO forces in the town of Maryinka, Donetsk region, using mortars and self-propelled artillery systems.

MP and coordinator of the Interior Ministry's Kyiv-1 special patrol police battalion Yevhen Deidei wrote on his Facebook page on Friday.

"The situation is exacerbated. Maryinka is again under militants' shelling. Positions of the ATO forces are fired at with self-propelled artillery systems and mortars," Deidei wrote.

There are no casualties among Ukrainian soldiers reported.

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87% of fortifications already built in Donbas - Poroshenko| Ukrinform
KYIV, June 12 /Ukrinform/. The average level of completion of the fortifications being built in Donetsk region is 87%.

President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko said this, paying working visit to Donetsk region, an Ukrinform correspondent has reported.

"The average level of plan performance is 87%," Poroshenko said.

Having familiarized with the construction of fortification facilities in the "M" sector, the President noted the strategic importance of the Mariupol outpost. "We must do everything possible to promptly, within two weeks, complete construction of defensive fortifications in Mariupol direction," Poroshenko stressed.

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Fire in pipeline in Donetsk region caused by shelling: smoke column seen 40 km away - read on - uatoday.tv

A gas pipeline was damaged and caught fire in the Donetsk region as a result of shelling by Russian-backed militants

UNIAN - "A mortar attack launched by militants damaged a gas pipeline on the territory of Yasinovaty district, between Krasnogorovka and Novokalinovo, with gas burning in close proximity to Avdiyivka. Reports of casualties are being checked," Head of the Chief Directorate of the Interior Ministry of Ukraine in Donetsk Region Vyacheslav Abroskin wrote on Friday on his page on Facebook.

Abroskin said that the militants continued to fire. From 05:00 in the morning the militants have been shelling from tanks and mortars at positions of the Ukrainian military in Avdiyivka and then began firing on a medium-pressure gas pipeline in the village of Krasnohorivka, a correspondent of Ukrainian news

The pipeline has been damaged in three places and started to burn. A smoke column can be seen from 40 kilometers. Rescuers and military doctors have been deployed at the scene, but the fire has not been localized yet.
The fire point cannot be approached closer than one and a half kilometers. The situation is aggravated by the fact that is located near a forest belt, with some trees already in fire. The shelling continues. No information about casualties has been reported yet.

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Interfax
11:06
Four Ukrainian soldiers injured in fighting near Krymske - Hennadiy Moskal

 

[Hindustani78]

Sumy Military Garrison, despite the workload, always find time and opportunity to communicate with children and their patriotic education.

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Navy Armed Forces of Ukraine conducted at a training grounds Odesa Company tactical live firing exercise. Tactical training involved to mouth marines separate battalion of coastal defense Naval Forces of Ukraine, reconnaissance, artillery and tank units, and naval aviation. Force worked kontrzasadnyh preparation and conduct of operations.

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OSCE reports militants' military hardware amassed near Ukrainian-controlled Mariupol : UNIAN news

"In a number of locations in "DPR" –controlled areas northeast of Mariupol, an SMM UAV spotted, inter alia, 14 main battle tanks (MBT), 48 armoured personnel carriers, and two engineering vehicles," the OSCE SMM said in its update on June 12 based on the information received as of 1930 Kyiv time on June 11, 2015.

An SMM ground patrol observed an additional MBT in the same general area.

What is more, further north – around "DPR"-controlled Ilovaisk (30km east-south-east of Donetsk) – an SMM UAV saw 32 military-type trucks.

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Interfax
June 13, 2015
11:57
Ukrainian soldier killed in militia shelling - Luhansk governor Moskal

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Six Ukrainian servicemen killed, 14 wounded in past 24 hours | Reuters
Sat Jun 13, 2015 7:03am EDT
Six Ukrainian servicemen have been killed and 14 wounded in separatist eastern territory in the past 24 hours, despite a four-month-old ceasefire deal, the Ukrainian military said on Saturday.

The truce brokered by the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France has stemmed large-scale fighting but skirmishes claim lives almost daily on both sides, and international monitors have warned of the threat of a bigger flare-up.

The situation is particularly tense around the airport near rebel-controlled Donetsk city, military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said.

"The enemy threw tanks, armored personnel carriers and heavy artillery into battle. We emphasize that rebels are also firing at residential areas," he said in a briefing.

The casualties were a result of shelling by pro-Russian separatists as well as encounters with mines, he said.

Meanwhile separatist officials accused Ukrainian forces of firing at the village of Oktyabrsky near Donetsk, wounding two civilians, and shelling three districts of the city over the past day, rebel press service DAN reported.

On Thursday, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said that despite assertions to the contrary, neither side has completed the withdrawal of heavy weapons as agreed in the ceasefire deal.

(Reporting by Alessandra Prentice and Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)

 

[Hindustani78]

 

[vostok]

Ukraine’s Debt Reaches 100 Percent of GDP- Opposition Law maker
Ukraine’s debt is one trillion hryvnias and has reached 100 percent of GDP, Yury Boiko, leader of the Opposition Bloc faction in the Ukrainian Parliament, said.
Ukraine’s national debt have amassed to one trillion hryvnias ($47.6 billion) and is 100 percent of country’s GDP, Yury Boiko, leader of the Opposition Bloc faction in the Ukrainian Parliament, claimed.
"Ukraine’s debt is one trillion hryvnias and has reached 100 percent of GDP. During the last year, it increased by three times. It is a serious problem the government tries to ignore," Boiko said.
According to the lawmaker, the Ukrainian government is living on credit alone; it just recently borrowed $12 billion.
Ukrainian officials make foreign visits only with one goal – to ask for loans, Boiko added. While the real economy remains in crisis, the government is not taking measures to increase its budget income and to index wages and pensions.
Earlier, the Ukrainian Finance Ministry reported that as for March 31 the national debt was an estimated $54 billion. However, financial experts have repeatedly warned that by the end of 2015 the situation would be critical, with the debt comprising 90-100 percent of GDP.
Ukraine’s Debt Reaches 100 Percent of GDP - Opposition Lawmaker / Sputnik International

 

[Hindustani78]

An Ukrainian serviceman patrols in a school destroyed after a shelling between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists in Pisky village, Donetsk region on June 10, 2015.
© AFP

Fierce fighting erupts near ruins of Donetsk airport - watch on - uatoday.tv
14:30 Jun. 13, 2015
Ceasefire violations continue in east Ukraine

Fighting has intensified around Donetsk airport, with Russian-backed militants moving armored vehicles up to the line of contact, according to a statement made on Wednesday, June 10 by Ukrainian Presidential Administration spokesman Andriy Lysenko.

Heavy battle also erupted at Donetsk airport in Ukraine's east on Friday (June 12). Footage, obtained by Reuters, shows pro-Moscow separatists firing automatic machine guns after a shell hit building few hundred meters away from the airport terminal where they have taken positions. Few minutes later a tank and an APC arrived and fired several shots in the direction of Ukrainian army positions.

Three civilians and two Ukrainian soldiers were killed in eastern Ukraine within 24 hours up to midday on Thursday, June 11, Kyiv's military said, further eroding a four-month-old ceasefire in the separatist conflict.

 

[vostok]

Happy Western Ukrainians enjoy visa-free regime with the EU. That is - with Poland, where half of them (the other half - in Russia) work as laborers.

 

[Hindustani78]

JCCC observes intense shelling of Luhanske | Міністерство оборони України
Saturday, June 13. DONBAS – According to the monitors of the Joint Centre for Control and Coordination, the Ukrainian positions near Luhanske are under intense shelling.

On June 12, JCCC stopped fire for 5 times from 06:00 p.m. to 09:00 p.m.

Totally, there were 14 attacks even with 122 and 152 mm artillery to be withdrawn under the Minsk agreements from Horlivka and Vuhlehirsk (terrorist-controlled).

On June 13, JCCC monitors submitted the documented facts of shelling to the monitors of the OSCE SMM.

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Illegal armed formations intensify shelling | Міністерство оборони України
According to the press centre of the ‘anti-terror’ operation (ATO) HQ, yesterday, the enemy completed 109 attacks against the Ukrainian positions.

Militants shelled Novotoshkivka with Grad multiple rocket launchers, Zolote with 120 mm mortars.

Donetsk outskirts are still the flashpoint. Terrorists shelled Opytne, Butovka mine, Taramchuk, Starohnativka, Mariynka with weapons forbidden by the Minsk Agreements.

The enemy used tanks against Vodyane and Opytne.

Russian terrorist groups attacked Novoselivka Druha with 82 mm mortars.

The enemy shelled Shyroka Balka with 152 mm artillery, Novhorodske with 120 mm mortars.

Krymske was shelled with 120 mm mortars.

Terrorists attacked Kirove, Leninske and Luhanske with small arms, grenade launchers, armament of armored vehicles and mortars.

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On Saturday evening, Ukrainian troops repelled a new attack by militants' infantry on the town of Maryinka in Donetsk region, the press service wrote on Twitter.

"At about 2130 Kyiv time [on Saturday, June 13], the enemy started shelling our positions near the town of Maryinka, using 122mm-caliber artillery systems and 120mm-caliber mortars. Sabotage-reconnaissance groups were attempting to break through," the tweet reads.

At about 2230 Kyiv time, the intensity of firing on the Ukrainian positions weakened, though it continued. The Ukrainian troops opened intensive return fire on the enemy.

"By 2300, an attack by two enemy infantry groups had been repelled. After a proper rebuff, the enemy's attempts to storm have considerably been scaled down," the tweet reads.

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Interfax
2015-06-13
15:11
Luhansk militias claim to have captured two Ukrainian soldiers near Pervomaisk

 

[Hindustani78]

One Ukraine soldier killed, 21 hurt in clashes with separatists | Zee News
Last Updated: Sunday, June 14, 2015 - 19:55
Kiev: Ukraine`s military on Sunday said escalating clashes between government forces and pro-Russian insurgents in the separatist east left one Ukrainian soldier dead and 21 injured.

A top military adviser for Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said the fighting had intensified around the rebel-held airport of the insurgents` de facto capital Donetsk.

"The past day of combat (in the war zone) saw one Ukrainian serviceman die and 21 being injured," Oleksandr Motuzyanyk told reporters.

The latest casualties near the twisting and hotly disputed line separating Ukrainian forces from their heavily-armed foes add to the strains of a February truce designed to end one of Europe`s deadliest conflicts in decades.

About 50 people have been reported killed this month -- a figure that fails to include the deaths suffered by the secretive and partially splintered rebel command.

The February accords that the leaders of Germany and France helped broker had initially helped limit the fighting to hotspots whose status had been under dispute from the start.

But last week more than 35 people died as intense mortar and artillery fire returned to previously quiet eastern regions of the former Soviet state.

Western monitors said the clashes came after both sides pulled their heaviest guns up to the truce line in apparent preparation for a hot summer campaign.

AFP