Rebel chief announces new offensive in Ukraine

DONETSK, Ukraine, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- A pro-Russian separatist leader in Ukraine rejected future peace talks Friday, saying an escalation in the military conflict could be expected.

Rebel leader Alexander Zakharchenko said the resumption of fighting in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk indicates his troops have begun a new offensive against the Ukrainian military, and he would not encourage peace talks now. The city's suburban airport, site of continuous fighting for weeks, fell to rebels Thursday, and 13 died when a mortar shell struck a trolley bus.

Each side blamed the other for the trolley attack.The separatists captured seven Ukrainian soldiers and paraded them at the bus stop where the trolley was struck; the BBC reported the soldiers were abused by local residents. The increase in hostilities comes as Western powers and the Kiev government have accused Russia of sending 9,000 fresh troops and additional military equipment over the border into Ukraine, and the collapse of peace talks meant to reinforce a September 2014 cease-fire agreement.

Zakharchenko said the separatists "will not make any attempts at ceasefire talks anymore." Of the alleged increase in personnel and equipment from Russia, he added, "we'll attack right up to the borders of Donetsk region, but if I see a threat from other directions, we'll neutralize it. Kiev doesn't understand now that we can attack in three directions simultaneously."

Oleksandr Turchynov, chief of the Ukrainian Defense Council, confirmed Friday that fighting had increased, as France, Russia, Germany and Ukraine issued a joint statement at a Berlin conference calling for a cease-fire. "The enemy will stop at nothing. Russian terrorist groups have essentially violated all prior cease-fire agreements... and are today assuming active offensive operations. We are talking about active units of the Russian armed forces," Turchynov said.