Donetsk and Luhansk military units control the railway
terminal and Debaltsevo’s eastern outskirts, but this is not in any way the
larger part of the town, DPR defense ministry representative says
MOSCOW, February 17. /TASS/. Militias of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) control the railway terminal and the eastern outskirts of the town of Debaltsevo, the DPR’s Defense Ministry said on Tuesday.
"Our military units have long been present in Debaltsevo, largely militia from the LPR but there are also units from the DPR," the defense ministry said.
"We control the railway terminal and the town’s eastern outskirts. But this is not in any way the larger part of the town," the Donetsk news agency quoted a representative of the DPR’s defense ministry who commented on the reports that militias controlled the larger part of Debaltsevo.
Source: ITAR-TASS
17-02-2015
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Donetsk republic claims 60 Ukrainian troops killed in Donbas on Feb 16
According to the defense ministry of the
self-proclaimed republic, DPR militias over the same period lost three infantry
carriers, two militias were killed and 21 were wounded
MOSCOW, February 16. /TASS/. Ukraine’s army lost 60 troops in Donbas on February 16, Eduard Basurin, a spokesman for the defense ministry of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), said on Monday, adding that DPR militias lost 2 men and 21 were wounded.
He said the most difficult situation was around Debaltseve.
"During the day, Ukrainian troops shelled DPR army’s positions in Logvinovo and nearby localities from Lugansky and Debaltseve," he said. "On separate occasions, we were forced to fire back at the Ukrainian artillery’s positions, from where shelling was opened. Moreover, Ukrainian troops never stopped gun and mortar fire around Debaltseve."
He said that in these skirmishes Ukrainian troops lost two tanks, seven infantry carriers and armored vehicles, five artillery systems, six cars. Sixty Ukrainian servicemen were killed.
DPR militias over the same period lost three infantry carriers. Two militias were killed and 21 were wounded.
Latest peace agreements
At Minsk talks on Ukraine crisis settlement leaders of Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine on February 11-12 negotiated a package of measures to implement the Minsk agreements adopted in September. The first point of the document sets condition for an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire beginning at 00:00 hours (Kiev time) on February 15, 2015.The package of measures envisages pullback of all heavy weapons by both parties to locations equidistant from the disengagement line in order to create a security zone at least 50 kilometers wide for artillery systems with a caliber of 100 mm or more, a zone of security 70 kilometers wide for multiple rocket launchers and a zone 140 kilometers wide for multiple rocket launchers Tornado-S, Uragan and Smerch and the tactical rocket systems Tochka-U.
The final document says that the Ukrainian troops are to be pulled back away from the current line of engagement and the militias of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions, from the engagement line set by the Minsk Memorandum of September 19, 2014.
Ceasefire came into effect from February 15.
Source: ITAR-TASS
17-02-2015
