The Ukrainian military says that fighting between government troops and Russia-backed separatists has intensified in eastern Ukraine.
Senior government official Andriy Lysenko said on May 28 that one soldier had been killed in recent fighting.
Russia-backed fighters have accused the army of carrying out dozens of attacks in recent days as both sides charge each other with not observing a ceasefire.
The uptick in violence saw a patrol from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Special Monitoring Mission shot at in the Donetsk region on May 27.
The mission's chief monitor, Ertugrul Apakan, condemned the attack, in which nobody was injured.
Amid the increased violence, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has called for greater foreign assistance and has appointed former NATO secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmussen as his adviser.
Rasmussen said on May 28 on Facebook that he will do his “utmost to promote security, economic reforms, and stronger EU ties” in his new capacity.
Poroshenko has not specified on what issues Rasmussen will be advising.
Rasmussen described the “security situation” in eastern Ukraine as “alarming.” He also said Ukraine must fight corruption and implement reforms.
Russian Duma member Leonid Kalashnikov, deputy chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, told Interfax that Rasmussen’s appointment was “a hostile gesture” toward Russia.
“It shows that Ukraine has chosen the West and NATO as the vector of its drifting movement,” he said, describing Ukraine as “a beachhead against Russia” that “will be used sooner or later.”
Konstantin Kosachyov, chairman of the Federation Council’s International Relations Committee, said on Facebook that Rasmussen’s appointment, like many other Ukrainian moves, is “for show” because “Ukraine badly needs…attention from the outside.”
Editors' Picks
Top Trending
1
Amid Worries Over Russian Forces In Belarus, Former Security Officer Says Belarusian Conscripts Won't Fight
2In Ukraine's Donbas, Intensifying Russian Offensives -- An Omen Of Things To Come?
3Interview: For Putin, The War In Ukraine Is Hard To Win And Even Harder To End
4Punished By Western Sanctions, Russia's Airlines Are Showing More Cracks And More Problems
5Interview: Writer Vladimir Sorokin Says Russia's Unresolved Historical Traumas Have Now 'Taken The Form Of War'
6Denounced By Her Classmates, Anti-War Russian Teen Faces A Long Prison Term
7'They Will Send The Army To Ukraine': Bulgarian Social Media Flooded With Rumors Of Military Draft
8Ukraine Will Hold Bakhmut, Zelenskiy Vows, Amid Warnings About New Offensive In The East
9Biden To Speak With Zelenskiy As Ukraine's Calls For Fighter Jets Grow Louder
10Romance And Realism: The Former Banker Photographing Rural Romania
Subscribe