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Donetsk republic says Kiev forces do not start withdrawing artillery

Militia forces of the self-proclaimed Donetsk republic reportedly started pullback of heavy weaponry at 9 a.m. local time

MOSCOW, February 24. /TASS/. Kiev troops have not yet started withdrawing heavy weaponry from the separation line set by the Minsk agreements, the defense ministry of the self-proclaimed Donetsk republic (DPR) said on Tuesday.

"While the DPR remains the initiator of the heavy weaponry withdrawal, Ukraine has not yet started the pullback," the ministry said in a statement quoted by the Donetsk news agency.

A dialogue at the level of the command is currently being held, the statement says.

The DPR defense ministry spokesman, Eduard Basurin, said earlier that the militias started withdrawing artillery weapons at 9 a.m. (0700 GMT) on Tuesday in line with the timeframe agreed between the self-proclaimed republics and Kiev.