Two Ukrainian soldiers died and six were wounded in a new uptick of fighting between government troops and Russian-backed rebels in the east following high-profile peace talks, the military said Friday. The latest casualties came despite efforts to revitalise a long-stalled peace process in the simmering war.
"The situation on the frontline has significantly deteriorated over the past 24 hours," military spokesman Oleksandr Motuzyanyk told reporters. Separatist forces used heavy weapons including tanks, artillery and large-calibre mortars, the Ukrainian military said. A series of periodic truce deals have helped lower violence levels in two breakaway regions in Ukraine's industrial east but have not fully ended the bloodshed.
On Monday Germany and France voiced cautious optimism that Russia and Ukraine would take steps to revive the peace process as the four foreign ministers held their first meeting since early last year.
During the talks, Russia and Ukraine formally committed to the key tenets of the 2015 Minsk agreement, brokered by Germany and France. But on Friday international monitors from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) accused Kiev and rebels of breaching the accord, urging them finally to fulfil their obligations.
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