[이데일리 방성훈 기자] Clashes between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine have continued for the third day and are intensifying. The diagnosis is that rebels backed by Russia are provoking Ukrainian forces, which have been ordered to stop firing.
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According to major foreign media such as the Washington Post (WP) and New York Times (NYT) on the 19th (local time), the fighting between the Ukrainian military and pro-Russian separatists continued for the third day from the 17th to this day in Donetsk and Lugansk in the Donbass region. .
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which has been acting as an observer in the Donbass conflict, said that there were regarding 2,000 violations of the Minsk armistice that day due to shelling between government forces and rebels in the region, which was worse than the 1,500 cases the day before.
Ukrainian government forces also had 66 violations of the armistice agreement by Russian forces in the 24 hours the day before, and 70 violations occurred that day, suggesting that more clashes have occurred. He added that it is believed that two government troops were killed and five others were wounded in the rebel shelling.
The government and the rebels claim that the other reacted by bombarding each other first. Ukraine’s Interior Ministry said the number of firings of mortars, cannons and rocket-propelled grenades was “regarding twice that of the previous two days.”
However, the Ukrainian military said, “the number of bombings has increased tenfold since the 17th. Literally we can see where we’re flying from.” Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denis Monastirsky, who was inspecting the frontline on the same day, took refuge in the news that a mortar had been dropped several hundred meters away.
The New York Times reported, “Our reporters at the scene also witnessed the rebel bombing. Residents know that bombing is being carried out from both sides, but reporters have not seen a Ukrainian counterattack.
On the other hand, the rebels countered that the government forces were attacking the Donbas area and issuing an order to mobilize the army. The rebels urged women and children to evacuate to the Rostov region of Russia and urged men in good health to prepare for a fight, suggesting that fighting would intensify.
The New York Times reported, “They are actually getting mad at refugees on buses heading to Russia, and camps are being built in refugee camps across the Russian border,” the New York Times reported. ” he explained.
Western countries such as the United States and Europe believe that Russia is inducing armed conflict in the Donbas region to create an excuse for an invasion of Ukraine.
The WP said, “In eastern Ukraine, the bombardment is getting so intense that it is difficult to tell whether it is a mortar or a howitzer.” He said, “The rebels backed by Russia continue to provoke the Ukrainian forces who have been instructed not to open houses in these areas to provoke them. is breaking down,” he reported.
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