The shaky ceasefire in Ukraine has been thrown into peril after pro-Moscow separatists shot down a Ukrainian military helicopter, killing nine servicemen.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko warned he may end the weeklong truce ahead of time. The deadly attack came a day after the rebels vowed to respect the cease-fire, which began last Friday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, meanwhile, played the peacemaker, urging Ukraine to extend the truce and sit down for talks with the rebels. He also moved to rescind a parliamentary resolution authorising him to use the Russian military in Ukraine.
Poroshenko declared the ceasefire as part of a plan to end two months of fighting between government troops and pro-Russian insurgents in the east. The violence, which erupted after the Kremlin’s lightning annexation of Crimea in March, has left hundreds dead.
The ceasefire has been repeatedly broken by sporadic clashes, and it was violated again on…
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