Ukraine News Updates -- February 21, 2017

Politico: Ukraine: not quiet on the Eastern front

Fighting persists despite the two-year anniversary of the Minsk 2 cease-fire agreement.

The gut-churning bass of artillery rockets dispels the myth that a cease-fire is holding in eastern Ukraine, two years after the Minsk 2 agreement between Russian-backed separatists and pro-government forces was signed.

At least 30 civilians died when the fighting escalated again in January, following what the government in Kiev described as an unsuccessful offensive by pro-Moscow rebels on the city of Avdiivka. In a sluggish 20th-century war of attrition, where undersupplied trenches are hit by sporadic artillery fire, graffiti on a Ukrainian soldier’s helmet paraphrases the title of Erich Maria Remarque’s classic on the First World War: “Nothing new on the western eastern front.”

Civilians trapped in the fighting initially fled to safer ground in 2014. However, when their money ran out many of those families saw no option other than to return to their homes on the front line.

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Ukraine News Updates -- February 21, 2017

Ukraine accuses pro-Russia rebels of breaking truce. -- Al Jazeera
Ukraine accuses rebels of breaking truce as Western concern rises -- AFP
Fresh ceasefire appears to hold for now in eastern Ukraine -- Reuters
Ukraine rebels accuse OSCE of aiding Kiev forces -- AFP
A Blockade Brings Eastern Ukraine to a Slow Boil -- Stratfor
Ukraine, Russia Spar Over UN Security Council Reaction To Churkin Death -- RFE
Ukraine backs more sanctions against Russia in passport spat -- AP
Poroshenko urges EU to tighten anti-Russian sanctions. -- TASS
Kremlin says Ukraine peace plan mooted by lawmaker 'absurd' -- Reuters
Russia dismisses 'absurd' Ukraine peace plan put forward by Donald Trump's associates -- The Independent
Ukrainian MP Plans to Travel to Washington to Push Peace Plan -- Reuters
Ukraine Lawmaker Faces 'Treason' Inquiry Over Back-Channel Peace Plan -- RFE
The Mystery of the Ukraine Peace Plan -- Julia Ioffe, The Atlantic
EU To Renew Asset Freeze Against Ukraine's Ex-President -- RFE
Ukraine's Corruption-Battling Cops Bemoan Growing Resistance -- Bloomberg
Healthier teeth, stronger fighters: meet Ukraine's frontline dentists -- The Guardian
As casualties mount in eastern Ukraine, some wonder whether Putin is testing Trump -- FOX News