Situation in Eastern Ukraine Remains Shaky...

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin participated in a telephone conversation with Germany’s Angela Merkel, France’s Francois Hollande and Ukraine’s Petro Poroshenko. The four politicians spoke about the crisis in Ukraine on Sunday, sending conciliatory messages. Nonetheless, tensions came back on Monday, when Moscow protested after a Russian television cameraman was shot dead in Eastern Ukraine. 

‘The four leaders welcomed the liberation of the detained observers from the OSCE mission and also saw as a positive step the consultations that took place in Donetsk on June 27 between the parties to the conflict. The conversation stressed the importance of organising contacts of this kind on a regular basis. An appeal was made to Mr Poroshenko to extend the ceasefire. The four leaders discussed the possibility of sending OSCE inspectors to monitor checkpoints on the Russian-Ukrainian border,’ reads a note released by the Kremlin on Sunday evening.  

According to the office of Putin, the leaders also spoke about the Association Agreement signed by Ukraine and the European Union on June 27.

Gas flow from Ukraine remains normal, according to Slovakia’s Eustream. Uncertainties remain however, despite positive signals.

According to Reuters, Anatoly Klyan, who worked for state-controlled Channel One, was killed on Sunday night. His employers said Klyan was shot dead in an overnight attack by Ukrainian military. Russia said the event is a possible risk factor, casting doubts on the possibility of an effective ceasefire in the region.