Government forces traded fire with pro-Russian separatists in Slovyansk on Monday after Ukraine’s newly-elected president called for a ceasefire by the end of the week.<br /><br />For nearly two months, the city has been at the centre of a standoff between Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russian rebels, some of whom have seized administrative buildings, police stations and border posts across the eastern region.<br /><br />Large booms could reportedly be heard in the city centre, where some buildings bore damage from shelling the previous day.<br /><br />“Yesterday, the centre of the city was hit the hardest. There were a lot of injured people, and a lot of buildings were hit that had not been hit before,” said one plain clothes police officer.<br /><br />One woman added: “This will never end. They will only stop shooting when they wipe us from the face of the planet, when nothing remains here but an empty space.”<br /><br />She did not specify who she was referring to.<br /><br />On Sunday, President Petro Poroshenko announced daily negotiations were underway in Kyiv with a view to ending the conflict.<br /><br />Ukraine, Russia, and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) are all represented at the talks, which Poroshenko said focussed on strengthening the Ukraine-Russia border.<br /><br />He said Ukraine “must cease fire by the end of the week.”<br /><br />Ukraine and Russia took part in last minute gas talks on Monday. Brokered by the European Union, the discussions are aimed at trying to prevent supply disruptions.<br /><br />Russia has threatened to cut off gas supplies to neighbouring Ukraine if it does not pay its bills.
