In the self-proclaimed LPR and DPR on Thursday morning, they reported a strong aggravation of the situation on the line of contact. Representatives of the republics said that Ukraine is making attempts to escalate the conflict. Information about the victims is being clarified. Read more about the situation in the material. The situation on the line of contact in Donbass has escalated significantly over the past 24 hours. This was announced on Thursday, February 17, by the head of the People's Militia of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People's Republic, Yan Leshchenko.

“The enemy, on the direct orders of the Kiev military-political leadership, is making attempts to escalate the conflict.

We call on international observers to record the facts of aggressive actions by the Kiev militants and take immediate measures to prevent bloodshed in the Donbass,” his emergency statement says.

According to the representative office of the DPR and LPR in the Joint Center for Control and Coordination of the Ceasefire, units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces fired on areas of nine settlements of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics for two hours on Thursday.

“About 160 munitions with a caliber of more than 12.7 mm were fired,” the Donetsk News Agency quoted the message as saying.

It is noted that the shelling took place from 5:32 to 7:42 Moscow time. The areas of the settlements of Kominternovo, Oktyabr, Novolaspa, Petrovskoe in the DPR, as well as Veselenkoe, Donetsk, Zolotoe-5, Nizhnee Lozovoe, Sokolniki in the LPR fell into the affected area. Mortars of 120 mm and 82 mm caliber were used (67 mines in total), grenade launchers of various types (90 rounds), small arms, including large-caliber ones.

According to the representative of the LPR in the political subgroup of the contact group, Rodion Miroshnik, the Armed Forces of Ukraine shelled the village of Novolaspa in the DPR from mortars and grenade launchers for an hour. “The fight has been going on for an hour. Armed formations of Ukraine are firing grenade launchers and large-caliber mortars at the settlement.

The People's Militia of the DPR is actively suppressing enemy firing points. The regime of silence on the line of contact has been torn to shreds,” he said.

Units of the People's Militia of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic returned fire on the points of the Ukrainian security forces who were shelling the territory of the DPR.

“In order to protect the civilian population, our defenders were forced to return fire to suppress enemy firepower.

Information about casualties among the civilian population and damage to civilian infrastructure facilities is being specified," the representative of the department said.

Since July 2020, a package of additional measures to strengthen and control the ceasefire regime has been formally in force in the region. In particular, it prohibits the use of weapons, the placement of military equipment near settlements, and the conduct of engineering work on positions. After the January holidays in the Donbass, there has been an increase in tension, TASS states.

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“Genocide in Donbass”

At the talks held in Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz touched upon the possible recognition by Moscow of the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR. An appeal on this issue to the head of the Russian state was prepared by deputies of the State Duma. In their opinion, such a measure would help protect the inhabitants of the republics from "genocide".

“According to our estimates, what is happening in the Donbass today is genocide,” Putin said.

Commenting on the situation around Ukraine, he noted that the people of his generation and Scholz had already witnessed the "war in Europe." We are talking about the NATO operation against Yugoslavia, carried out in 1999 without the sanction of the UN Security Council. “This is a very bad example. But he was, ”said the President of the Russian Federation.

According to him, Russia does not want a repeat of this situation. “That is why we put forward proposals for a negotiation process, the result of which should be an agreement on ensuring equal security for everyone, including our country,” he explained.

Scholz responded by pointing out that "in Yugoslavia a somewhat different situation prevailed, there was a danger and a threat of genocide." In his opinion, in Yugoslavia, due to the NATO operation, it was possible to prevent this threat, and now "everything is developing peacefully there" and the peoples of the Balkans have found a prospect in the direction of the EU, writes RBC.

In turn, White House press secretary Jen Psaki emphasized that "Russians are known for their methods of spreading disinformation."

“Well, the Russians are known for their rhetorical escalation, they are also known for their methods of spreading disinformation around the world and in Eastern European states. Therefore, I think we should make every effort to communicate with distrust,” she said, emphasizing that “it is Russia that is responsible for unleashing the conflict in Donbas.”

bbabo.Net