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DPR official says Kiev beefs up positions deploying rocket artillery to Donbass

A military official reports two batteries of the Akatsiya and Gvozdika self-propelled artillery mounts, a tank troop and a mortar platoon have been spotted moving to the contact line

DONETSK, October 28. /TASS/. The Ukrainian military have deployed tube and rocket artillery banned by the Minsk agreements to the line of contact in Donbass, Spokesman of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) Operational Command Eduard Basurin said on Friday.

"The deployment of manpower and military hardware to the line of contact testifies to the fact that the Ukrainian military command is getting ready to intensify hostilities," the Donetsk news agency quoted him as saying.

According to Basurin, two batteries of the Akatsiya and Gvozdika self-propelled artillery mounts, a tank troop and a mortar platoon have been spotted moving in the direction of the town of Gorlovka. The Ukrainian military’s positions near the city of Donetsk have been reinforced by two batteries of self-propelled artillery mounts, a troop of 120 mm mortars and tanks. A Grad multiple rocket launchers platoon, a Nona-S self-propelled artillery gun, a mortar battery and up to a battalion of militants have been deployed to the suburbs of the city of Mariupol.

According to the Minsk Agreements’ Implementation Measures Package dated February 12, 2015, weapons of over 100 mm should be withdrawn so that there is at least a distance of 50 kilometers between the warring sides’ positions. The distance between the troops armed with multiple rocket launchers is set to be 70 kilometers, the troops armed with Tochka missiles should be deployed at least 140 kilometers away from each other. According to the additional document to the Measures Package agreed on in September, weapons of under 100 mm, tanks and mortars including 120 mm ones, should also be withdrawn.