Our news desk has issued this item on some disheartening developments regarding the shaky truce:
Ukraine says three of its soldiers have been killed and seven wounded in the east over the past 24 hours, following two days when no fatalities were reported.
The military said on February 27 that fighting with pro-Russian separatists had halted along most of the frontline but that there were still clashes in villages around Donetsk airport.
President Petro Poroshenko earlier said that a "military threat from the east" will remain even if a cease-fire holds between government troops and rebels.
The warning was seen as a reference to Russia, which Kyiv and the West accuse of helping the separatists with weapons and soldiers -- a claim denied by Moscow.
The two sides say they are withdrawing their heavy weapons from the front line under a truce deal signed in Minsk earlier this month.
But the process is yet to be officially confirmed by international monitors.
(AFP, Reuters)
Here is the latest map of the military situation in the Donbas region issued by Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council (click to enlarge):
Some worrying Savchenko news now from RFE/RL's news desk:
A member of the Kremlin's human rights council has said that jailed Ukrainian pilot Nadia Savchenko "could die within days."
Yelena Masyuk said on February 27 that she had visited Savchenko in jail the previous evening and the captive pilot's health had seriously deteriorated.
Savchenko has been on a hunger strike for nearly 80 days protesting what she calls her illegal detention and false charges brought against her.
Savchenko was captured by pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine in June and taken to Russia, where she was charged with involvement in a mortar attack that killed two Russian journalists.
Russia's Federal Penitentiary Service issued a statement later on February 27 rejecting the claims by "journalist" Masyuk and claiming that Savchenko was being constantly monitored and was in no danger of dying.
The penitentiary service also questioned whether Masyuk had medical training that would allow her to comment on health issues.
(AFP, Interfax, TASS)
An Anti-Maidan protest outside RFE/RL's Moscow offices today. Judging from the picture, there almost seems to be more journalists there than demonstrators. It will be interesting to see how the demo looks on TV:
An interesting tweet on Putin's soaring approval level (86 percent):