Militants not observing artillery silence in Donbas – ATO spokesman

Kyiv has blamed Donbas militants for violating the artillery silence regime in the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) zone and for shelling Ukrainian positions all along the separation line.

"The situation remains unstable in the anti-terrorist operation zone. The enemy has not been observing the artillery silence regime, using fire arms, mortars, grenade launchers and armored vehicles against Ukrainian positions all along the separation line," ATO spokesman Andriy Lysenko said at a press briefing in Kyiv on Sunday.

He said the Ukrainian positions near Avdiyivka have been shelled twice, even though the artillery systems should have been removed in accordance with the Minsk agreements.

Militants also used mortars in shelling Krasnohorivka, he said.

The situation is particularly tense in Donetsk airport area, he said, adding that the enemy has delivered six strikes against Ukrainian positions near the town of Opytne, including with tanks.

A fight between militants and Ukrainian forces started at about 13.00 on March 22 and lasted for about 30 minutes, he said. "The Ukrainian military held their positions and repelled the enemy attack," Lysenko said.

Ukrainian forces have enough strength and means to repel enemy attacks in any sector of Donbas, he said.

"The monitoring done suggest that we have enough strength and means to deal with any strike from any direction against the separation line," Lysenko said.