KIEV
Major NATO and U.S. military ground exercises began in Ukraine’s western city of Lvov on Monday as renewed clashes took place between government forces and pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country.
More than 1,200 soldiers from 15 countries – including Ukraine, the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Germany – will take part in the exercise, which has been dubbed ‘Rapid Trident-2014’. The exercises are scheduled to end on September 26.
Ukraine also launched three-day naval drills in the Black Sea in the country’s northwest which ended on Wednesday.
The Ukrainian government and separatist leaders signed a cease-fire on September 5 after negotiations in Belarus, with hopes of ending the five-month conflict.
However, minor clashes have taken place with shelling near Donetsk airport on Monday, prompting concerns that the fragile truce could break down.
Monitors come under fire in eastern Ukraine
A group of observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) came under fire near the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk late on Sunday, according to the organization's official website.
The group were patrolling the area near the Putilovka market, located in the Kievskiy district of Donetsk, which was earlier subjected to shelling, when a mortar shell exploded about 200 metres away from the team's position.
Representatives from the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) told the monitors that a total of four people were killed in the mortar attack.
After the incident German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko expressed their concern about the violation of the ceasefire and agreed to continue their work on a peaceful settlement in the region during a telephone conversation, according to a statement from Ukrainian presidential press office.
Meanwhile, Poroshenko announced 73 more Ukrainian soldiers were released by pro-Russian separatists on Monday, as part of the cease-fire agreement with the Ukrainian government.
On September 5, the Ukrainian government and separatist leaders signed a ceasefire after negotiations in Belarus, with hopes of ending the five-month conflict. However, shelling took place on Monday near Donetsk airport in eastern Ukraine, raising fears that the truce might end.
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