KIEV, Ukraine (AP) – Ukraine’s president says government and rebel forces have pulled back most of their heavy weapons in the east, but each side accused the other on Tuesday of stalling on complying other terms of a cease-fire deal.
The cautious optimism articulated by Petro Poroshenko was tempered Tuesday by his foreign minister, who accused rebels of obstructing monitors tasked with verifying the pullback. A rebel spokesman accused Ukrainian forces of falling behind schedule in withdrawing weapons.
Poroshenko said in an interview with a state broadcaster Monday evening that some heavy weaponry remains in place near a combat flashpoint at the airport of the rebel-held city of Donetsk.
Some progress in the arms-withdrawal process agreed at high-level peace talks last month will boost attempts to bring a definitive end to a conflict that the U.N. estimates has killed more than 6,000 and displaced almost 1.8 million people.
The pullback is being overseen by hundreds of monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which has complained of a lack of cooperation by both of the warring sides.