So Lavrov expresses an interest in meetings that include the OSCE, but warns against calling the breakaway leaders in eastern Ukraine who held sham referendums and tried to unilaterally secede and seek Russian help "separatists."
Soldiers in eastern Ukraine explained to our Ukrainian Service how they converted a Russian-made army truck into a bullet-proof armored vehicle to help them battle separatists. They used thick metal sheets to reinforce the driver's cab and the sides of the Ural off-road truck, which also carries an automatic grenade launcher.
The fighting comes to Donetsk in earnest:
This video purports to show "Russian military equipment" crossing a pontoon bridge near the Ukrainian border:
According to the Ukrainian military, the soldiers rtreted into Russian territory when they ran out of ammunition:
When shells began to reach a dolphinarium in the embattled Ukrainian city of Donetsk, several dolphins had to be moved to safer locations outside the rebel-controlled area. Two of them found a new home in Kharkiv, where the animals are kept in a stress-free environment so they can resume their performances in two weeks' time. (RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service)
