Below is the press release from the press office of the NATO Secretary General:
I welcome the signature of Association Agreements between the EU and Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine. The Association Agreements, and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area, will significantly deepen the political and economic ties between the EU and its three Eastern partners.
They contribute to the consolidation of freedom, stability and prosperity in Europe. They will allow close cooperation on strengthening the rule of law, advancing judicial reforms, fighting corruption, ensuring respect for fundamental rights and freedoms and strengthening democratic institutions. These are goals that NATO shares and supports through its own partnership with these countries and other partners.
The Russian state-owned news agency RIA Novosti reports that Aleksandr Boroday, the self-declared prime minister of the 'Donetsk People's Republic' (DNR) has announced that separatist fighters would cease fire until June 30.
They report (translated by The Interpreter):
Militia from the self-declared Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics promise to cease fire until June 30, announced the prime minister of the DNR, Aleksandr Boroday, on Friday after a conference in Donetsk on the de-escalation of the situation in eastern Ukraine.
"We have learned that (Ukrainian President) Poroshenko has decided to cease fire until the 30th. We, for our part,are ceasing fire for this same period," said Boroday.
Ukrainska Pravda reports that the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence has reported on their website that a T-64 tank, captured from separatist forces during an attack on Artyomovsk, came from Russia, not from Ukrainian reserves.
They report (translated by The Interpreter):
Following analysis carried out by specialists from the Ukrainian military police and the Armoury of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, it has been found that, according to its serial numbers, this T-64BV tank was produced in October 1987 at the Malyshev tank factory in Kharkiv.
According to archival data this unit was sent to a military unit, which at the time was stationed within the territory of Russia.
This tank was not, and is not registered in the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Similar conclusions have been drawn from other weapons seized from the terrorists.
"In particular, an RPO-A Shmel hand-held flame-thrower with the revealing inscription "From Russia with love", seized from the militants, was also brought from the Russian Federation," says the Defence Ministry's announcement.
The video shows the commander of the army of the 'Donetsk Peoples' Republic,' Igor Strelkov, showing off IDs taken from the dead Ukrainian soldiers. This is actually standard practice by the separatists as they often use the IDs and bodies to trade for their own casualties.
When showing the IDs to LifeNews, Strelkov tells the journalists to "take photos, or else they [Kiev] will say there aren't any killed from yesterday. Otherwise they say they have no losses, or they say one killed, two injured. But here..."
"And look at this handsome fellow, the commander of the unit..."
Strelkov's claim of 20 dead does seem to be lower than the claims Ukraine is making (see previous update, in which Kiev confirms the loss of two BTRs at the hands of separatist tanks).
Strelkov makes no mention of his own casualties, but is grilled by the narrator about the number of Ukrainian soldiers killed:
Narrator: Well, approximately, according to the milita, approximately, how many mortalities were there?
Strelkov: It's complicated to say. But a platoon was destroyed for sure.
He then reads the names, listing soldiers from the 2nd division of 2nd platoon of the 1st Mobile Paratroopers Regiment.
He says that the separatists took no prisoners, but that they did capture a working and undamaged BTR which he promises to show the journalists later.
Strelkov also mentions that they may need to soon implement a ration card system.
At the end of the video he shows three shells which he says the separatists have seized. He then tells the camera that these weapons are used by the Ukrainian military to shell the city of Slavyansk.
All translations done by The Interpreter.