Ukraine’s Military to Continue Eastern Offensive
Ukraine’s acting defense minister said his forces will continue a military offensive against pro-Russian rebels in the country’s east after a Thursday attack in the region that killed at least 12 servicemen.
Mykhailo Koval said the military will press ahead with their mission until peace and order is restored in the area.
He commented to reporters in Kyiv on Friday, a day after pro-Russian separatists shot down a military helicopter near the flashpoint eastern city of Slovyansk. A general was among those killed.
Koval also said his forces had cleared the southern and western regions of the city of Donetsk of separatists, as well as a northern region of Luhansk.
U.S. White House spokesman Jay Carney said Thursday’s attack indicates separatists have access to “to advanced weaponry and other assistance from outside.”
Separately, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry raised concerns Thursday with his Russian counterpart about the ongoing violence, and about reports of foreign fighters crossing into Ukraine from Russian territory.
Despite weeks of Kremlin denials, Russia’s state-controlled news agency Ria Novosti said 33 of the estimated 50 rebel fighters killed Monday in Donetsk in a battle with Ukrainian troops came from Russia.
The news agency quoted the prime minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic as saying the bodies of the foreigners have been identified and returned to their relatives.
