KIEV, Ukraine – Ukrainian government and Russian-backed separatist forces have both pulled back the bulk of their artillery and rocket launchers from the front line in the east, in compliance with a cease-fire deal, Ukraine’s president said.
Petro Poroshenko told a state broadcaster Monday evening that some heavy weaponry remains in place at the airport of the rebel-held city of Donetsk, however.
Progress in the arms-withdrawal process agreed at high-level peace talks last month will boost attempts to bring a definitive end to a conflict that the U.N. estimates has killed more than 6,000 and displaced almost 1.8 million people.
The pullback is being overseen by hundreds of monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which has complained of a lack of co-operation by the warring sides.
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Col. Andriy Lysenko, a spokesman for Ukraine’s military operations in the east, said that government forces retain the option of returning the weapons if hostilities resume.
“In order not to put out servicemen at risk on the front line, there is some artillery positioned not far away,” he said. “In case of necessity, they will be brought back.”
Under the accord reached on Feb. 12 in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, heavy weapons are to be pulled back by distances between 25 and 70 kilometres (15 to 45 miles) from the front line, depending on their calibre.
Eduard Basurin, a representative for rebel armed formations, on Tuesday accused Ukrainian forces of running behind schedule in their withdrawal of some armaments.
Poroshenko said in his interview that exchanges of artillery and rocket fire have largely stopped along the 485-kilometre (300-mile) front, but that skirmishes with small arms and grenade launchers persist.
Interfax-Ukraine news agency cited military spokesman Anatoly Stelmakh as saying Tuesday that rebel forces had violated the cease-fire 12 times over the previous day.
The bulk of continued unrest has been concentrated around the separatist stronghold of Donetsk, but pitched battles are also taking place in the town of Shyrokyne, near the strategic port city of Mariupol.
Lysenko said fighting in Shyrokyne raged for more than three hours Monday.
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