Ukraine crisis: John Kerry issues blunt warning to Russia as deadly clashes at ...

Updated April 25, 2014 05:49:28

Ukrainian forces have reportedly killed several pro-Russian militants in clashes in the country's east, prompting Russia to start new military drills near the border.

Ukraine's interior ministry said on Thursday its forces and troops had killed 'up to five terrorists' while destroying three militant checkpoints north-east of the separatist-held city of Slaviansk.

In response to the operation and NATO exercises in eastern Europe, Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu said Russian troops had started military drills near the Ukrainian border.

If this military machine is not stopped, it will lead to greater numbers of dead and wounded.

Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu

'If this military machine is not stopped, it will lead to greater numbers of dead and wounded,' he was quoted by the Interfax news agency as having said.

'Planned exercises by NATO forces in Poland and the Baltic countries do not foster normalisation of the situation surrounding Ukraine, either.

'We are forced to react to such a development of the situation.'

Reuters journalists saw a Ukrainian detachment with five armoured personnel carriers take over a checkpoint on a road north of Slaviansk late on Thursday morning (local time) after it was abandoned by separatists who set tyres alight to cover their retreat.

However, two hours later the troops pulled back, allowing local militia to move in and begin reinforcing the position with sandbags.

It is unclear if Ukrainian troops are prepared to risk storming Slaviansk, a city of 130,000 that has become the military stronghold of a movement seeking annexation by Moscow of the Russian-speaking, industrial regions of eastern Ukraine.

For the past few weeks, Ukrainian forces have held back from combat, saying they are concerned about civilian casualties and about provoking reprisals from Russia, which does not recognise the new Ukrainian government and has warned that it would move to protect Russian-speakers in the east, as it did in Crimea.

Putin says Ukrainian actions would have 'consequences'

As the offensive at Slaviansk was confirmed, Russian president Vladimir Putin said it would be a very serious crime for Ukraine to use its army in the east and said there would be 'consequences'.

The troops could be planning to impose a cordon around the city to disrupt militants' contacts with the rest of the region and to promote surrender negotiations that have been initiated by European OSCE monitors following an international accord signed by Russia and Ukraine's Western allies a week ago in Geneva.

Slaviansk separatist mayor Vyacheslav Ponomaryov was quoted by local online site slavgorod.com.ua saying: 'If they break into the city, we are ready for them.'

His men have machine guns, grenade-launchers and at least one self-propelled artillery gun.

The soldiers seen taking the checkpoint near the village of Khrestyshche had arrived from the direction of Sviatogorsk.

They appeared disciplined and well-armed, wearing camouflage with black body armour and black helmets with riot visors.

To the south of Slaviansk, Reuters saw dozens of Ukrainian airborne troops with armoured assault vehicles digging in mid-morning and manning a checkpoint on the main road to the regional capital, Donetsk.

Reuters/ABC

Topics:unrest-conflict-and-war, world-politics, ukraine, russian-federation

First posted April 25, 2014 00:09:35