Arms transferred from Russia to rebel-held east Ukraine: Watchdog

An independent watchdog on Thursday told AFP it had seen weapons being transported from Russia to rebel-held areas of eastern Ukraine over the last week, contradicting Moscow's claim it is not arming separatists.

The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe said it had observed convoys of cargo trucks moving across the border under the cover of night.

A drone captured footage of "vehicles, including a truck carrying an armoured personnel carrier, entering and exiting Ukraine" using an unpaved route with no border crossing facilities, it said.

The OSCE has previously complained of its drones being jammed.

On two other occasions it had seen weapons convoys moving near, but not crossing, the border.

In response to the new reports, the United States urged the Kremlin to "stop providing deadly weapons under cover of night to its proxies in eastern Ukraine."