Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko has hailed the recapture of the eastern city of Slovyansk as the start of a “turning point” in Kyiv’s months-long battle against a separatist insurgency.<br /><br />“It’s not a total victory,” Poroshenko told reporters. “But freeing Slovyansk from a heavily armed gang of monsters has great symbolic importance. This is the start of a turning point in the fight against the rebels for the territorial integrity of Ukraine.”<br /><br />The retaking of the city represents Kyiv’s most notable military victory in three months of fighting. <br /><br />Many of the pro-Russian rebels, who had been in control of Slovyansk since April, have reportedly retreated to Donetsk.<br /><br />Some of the separatists have spoken of their disappointment in Russian President Vladimir Putin – saying that they had expected more support from Moscow in their efforts to break away from Kyiv.
