The News
Friday 29 of March 2024

Putin says Ukraine Escalated Conflict to Bolster US Support


Ukrainian tanks stand in the yard of an apartment block in Avdiivka, eastern Ukraine, Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2017,photo: AP/Evgeniy Maloletka
Ukrainian tanks stand in the yard of an apartment block in Avdiivka, eastern Ukraine, Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2017,photo: AP/Evgeniy Maloletka
Ukraine is concerned that President Donald Trump could roll back some sanctions imposed on Russia for its actions in Ukraine, and that European Union members could follow suit

AVDIIVKA, Ukraine – Salvos of artillery shook a sector of eastern Ukraine on Thursday, the fifth day of escalated fighting between government troops and Russia-backed separatist rebels. Two Ukrainian troops were killed overnight and 10 others wounded, the government said; rebels said one of their fighters was killed.

Reporters heard Grad rocket launchers fired on both sides of the conflict during the night. In the afternoon, shelling was heard in the distance from Avdiivka, a government-held town just north of Donetsk, the largest rebel-controlled city.

In Donetsk, rebel authorities said two civilians were injured in shelling. At least 12 people have been reported killed since the fighting around Avdiivka surged over the weekend.

More than 9,700 people have been killed since the war with separatist rebels began in April 2014. An agreement reached nearly two years ago called for a cease-fire and a pullback of heavy weaponry by both sides, but skirmishes persisted.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday accused Ukraine of starting the latest escalation to rally support from the new U.S. administration and other Western powers.

Ukraine is concerned that President Donald Trump could roll back some sanctions imposed on Russia for its actions in Ukraine, and that European Union members could follow suit.

“The Ukrainian leadership needs money, and the best way to get the EU, the U.S. and international organizations to pay is by posing as a victim of aggression,” Putin said in Budapest after a meeting with Hungarian President Viktor Orban.

Shelling over the weekend damaged water, heating and electricity supplies in Avdiivka amid a strong cold snap. Residents’ nerves were raw.

“I was born in 1941; I was in a war at birth and now I see it again,” said Valentina Pasternak, as she stood on her porch clutching two loaves of bread brought by aid workers. A shell had landed in her yard.

By Thursday, water and heat had been partly restored, but Avdiivka remained without electricity.

In Brussels, European Union President Donald Tusk urged Moscow to lean on the separatists to make sure the flare-up ends and a cease-fire is restored.

“Russia should use its influence to disengage the Russia-backed separatists,” Tusk said in a statement.

The Trump administration, meanwhile, maintained a low-key approach with a restrained tone that may reflect the start of a new U.S. approach to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

INNA VARENYTSIA