One month in, Ukraine truce exists in name only

Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian rebels marked a month since the signing of a Kremlin-backed truce on today by engaging in one of the most heated battles of their six-month war over the ex-Soviet state's eastern rustbelt.
The artillery blasts that rocked the frontline city of Donetsk were yet another blow to the 12-point peace agreement signed on September 5, and which is officially still in force.
"There is no ceasefire. You hear?" 31-year-old resident Yekaterina Manannikova said, pointing in the direction of Donetsk airport, once a glittering showcase for the biggest city in the east, now the battered scene of a non-stop firefight.

"Peace is already declared, how many times should it be declared to be effective? Two, three times?" said another local, Vitaliy Chura, 29, blaming the separatists for the continued fighting.
The agreement aimed at ending almost six months of war that has claimed over 3,300 lives -- included a promise to create a 30-kilometre buffer zone between the two forces.
But Ukraine's military says Kiev will not start pulling back forces until rebels stop firing on its positions, including at the airport.

Today, military spokesman Volodymyr Polyovy said rebels had launched two more airport attacks "with support of tanks" over the past 24 hours, but were repelled.

Two soldiers and at least three civilians died, putting the death toll since the ceasefire at 80, excluding rebel losses.
A recent statement by the Donetsk rebels on their official website listed the damage to the city over the past days and concluded: "The truce is worse than the battle."
Despite the continuing carnage, both sides have stopped short of declaring the truce dead.
Russian and Ukrainian soldiers have even created a monitoring contact group together with the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) to patrol the frontline.
France and Germany will also send drones "in the coming days" to monitor the ceasefire, French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on today.

But in Donetsk, shells were still falling over the neighbourhood of Gladkivka north of the centre, according to AFP correspondents.
Firefighters put out blazes engulfing a number of houses in the area. No one appeared to be hurt, with neighbours saying the owners had all fled the conflict months ago.