A woman stands Wednesday near a damaged house after an airstrike in a village
in Luhansk, one of two rebel-held regions in eastern Ukraine. Itar-Tass/Zuma Press
Ukraine Says Military Offensive Against Rebels Yielding Results
Diplomats in Berlin Agree to Try Again for Fresh Cease-Fire
By James Marson
The Wall Street Journal
Ukraine pressed ahead with a military offensive against pro-Russia militants in the east Wednesday, declaring early successes even as its top diplomat agreed in Berlin to work with his Russian counterpart toward a new cease-fire.
The government's claims of progress, two days after suspending a previous cease-fire, reflect a significant increase in the military's numbers and fighting ability in recent weeks.
Ukrainian officials said their forces had pushed armed militants out of three small eastern towns and were attacking more than 100 targets. But they said rebels were still attacking border checkpoints and army positions.
Military analysts said the Ukrainian troops will struggle to win decisively unless Russian President Vladimir Putin stems the flow of fighters and weapons across the border.
In Berlin, the foreign ministers of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France pledged at a hastily arranged meeting to work toward a cease-fire "to be observed by all concerned."
The four said representatives from Kiev and Moscow along with the separatists would meet no later than Saturday to try to reach an agreement, which would be monitored by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
Rebel leaders attended a similar "contact group" meeting last week and agreed to join the government's unilateral cease-fire, but deadly clashes continued unabated, with each side accusing the other of instigating violence.
The White House on Wednesday faulted pro-Russia separatists for failure to abide by the previous cease-fire in Ukraine and said it supported President Petro Poroshenko's decision to end it. "Unfortunately, in this case it only fueled separatist violence and allowed the separatists to make further advances," spokesman Josh Earnest said.
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