Pro-Russian separatists kill soldier in eastern Ukraine

KIEV, Ukraine

At least one Ukrainian soldier was killed in the pro-Russian separatists’ attacks in the eastern part of the country, said Ukrainian defense sources on Friday.

According to a statement by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, the attack occurred in the Vodyane area of the volatile Donbas region.

Representatives of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) were informed about the deadly attack, the statement noted.

Under the Normandy Format talks in June 2014, the leaders of France, Germany, Ukraine, and Russia informally established contact to resolve the war in the Donbas region following the invasion by Russian forces.

By September, the two warring neighbors and the OSCE signed an agreement called the Minsk Protocol to implement a peace plan and end the fighting, which has not been met with complete success.

Ukraine is seeking support from the EU and NATO alliance in the conflict that has been brewing between government forces and pro-Russian separatists for seven years.

*Writing by Ahmet Gencturk