adminKIEV. — The pro-independence insurgents in eastern Ukraine said they have begun a “full-scale” pull-out of heavy weapons from the front line of their fight with government troops.
They said the move was in accordance with a ceasefire deal signed on February 12.
“As of 9 a.m. local time our units continued withdrawal of heavy weapons from the line of contact,” Eduard Basurin, a senior insurgent commander, was quoted by the rebel-run Novorossia news agency as saying.
The insurgent forces have withdrawn about 20 units of heavy weaponry from the front line as of Tuesday morning, Basurin said, adding that an additional 96 howitzers and artillery cannons will be moved from the fighting area till the end of the day.
However, the press service of the government’s military operation in the east has not confirmed the pull-back of weapons by the insurgent forces, calling the claims about the withdrawal “empty phrases”.
In a statement on its Facebook page, the press service said the insurgents “use the ceasefire regime to strengthen their squads and accumulate ammunition”.
The pull-back of heavy weapons is part of the latest ceasefire deal agreed by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande on February 12 after 16 hours of talks in Minsk, capital of Belarus.
The deal, aimed at ending the 12-month-old conflict that has killed over 5,700 people, includes a truce from February 15, clear timelines for elections in eastern Ukraine, border control and prisoner exchange. — Xinhua.
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