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Poroshenko Warns Of Rising Terrorist Threat In Ukraine


A Ukrainian serviceman prepares his SPG-9 anti-tank grenade launcher near the village of Starognativka, in the Donetsk region.
A Ukrainian serviceman prepares his SPG-9 anti-tank grenade launcher near the village of Starognativka, in the Donetsk region.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has said the threat of terrorism has "significantly risen" in Ukraine.

"The level of guerrilla and terrorist threats in the regions outside the (conflict) zone has significantly risen," Poroshenko said during a meeting with Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and Interior Minister Arsen Avakov on July 10.

Poroshenko did not elaborate, but said the flow of weapons from the conflict zone, where Ukrainian troops are fighting pro-Russian separatists, posed a threat.

Kyiv considers Russian-backed rebels fighting against government troops in eastern Ukraine to be 'terrorists."

There have been dozens of minor terror incidents across Ukraine, including a bomb attack that killed at least two people and injured at least 10 at a rally in Kharkiv in February.

Kyiv has in the past accused Russia of "exporting terrorism" to Ukraine by providing weapons, training, and personnel to rebels in eastern Ukraine, a claim Russia denies.

In May, two Russian special forces soldiers captured in eastern Ukraine were charged with involvement in "terrorist activity."

The conflict in eastern Ukraine has killed more than 6,400 people since April 2014.

Based on reporting by Reuters

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