Russia rolls into Ukraine
A local resident looks at the rubble of a burnt house following shelling in Debaltseve, Sept. 4, 2014. Ukraine was poised today to strike a Kremlin-backed ceasefire deal with rebel leaders after almost five months of deadly conflict that has threatened to tear apart the former Soviet state and plunged East-West relations to post Cold War lows.
Salvyansk
Members of Ukrainian police special task force "Kiev-1" inspect weapons hidden by pro-Russian separatists in the basement of an unfinished house in Slavyansk, Sept. 2, 2014. Russian troops are strengthening their positions in eastern Ukraine and using aid shipments to smuggle in arms and other supplies to separatist forces, Kiev's military said on Tuesday.
Donetsk
A turret with a gun from a Ukrainian army tank is pictured at the site of a destroyed Ukrainian check-point as road workers clear debris outside the town of Olenivka near the city of Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, Sept. 2, 2014.
Mariupol
Ukrainian army soldiers take position near a check point by a road in Mariupol where pro-Russian separatists have launched an offensive with tanks, Sept. 4, 2014. Strong explosions rocked the outskirts of the key Ukrainian port city of Mariupol on September 4 as Kiev's forces battled pro-Moscow rebels.
Donetsk
An armed pro-Russian separatist stands next to an APC in the city of Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, Sept. 2, 2014.
Mariupol
Residents of Mariupol dig trenches and make fortifications with sandbags as they assist Ukrainian troops in organizing their defense on the outskirts of the southern Ukrainian city of Mariupol, Aug. 29, 2014. NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen urged Russia on August 29 to halt its "illegal" military actions in Ukraine, accusing it of a "dangerous" attempt to destabilize its western neighbor. The conflict raging in eastern Ukraine has killed nearly 2,600 people, the United Nations said on August 29, voicing concern about atrocities committed by armed groups and the increasing involvement of foreign fighters.
Mariupol
A soldier sets defense wire as Ukrainian troops organize their defense on the outskirts of the southern Ukrainian city of Mariupol, Aug. 29, 2014.
Mariupol
A Ukrainian loyalist fighter from the Azov Battalion stand guard on a hill on the outskirts of Mariupol, August 30, 2014. Pro-Russian rebels in east Ukraine warned on Saturday that they will launch a fresh offensive against government troops, days after seizing swathes of territory.
Lviv
A target depicting a portrait of Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a shooting range in the center of the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, Aug. 31, 2014. Russian President Vladimir Putin called on August 31 for immediate talks on the future of war-torn east Ukraine, saying for the first time that "statehood" should be discussed.
Lviv
A man prepares to shoot at targets depicting a portrait of Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a shooting range in the center of the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, Aug. 31, 2014.
Starobesheve
A pro-Russian fighters rests on top of a T-64 tank in Starobesheve, southeast of Donetsk, Aug. 31, 2014. Pro-Russian separatists were preparing a fresh offensive on a key coastal location in eastern Ukraine on Sunday, as EU leaders gave Moscow one week to curb its support for the rebels or face new sanctions. A ragtag mix of volunteer battalions and local residents were bracing for a desperate defence of Mariupol, a strategic port city and the last big town in the region still under Ukrainian control.
Olenivka
The wreckege of an Armoured Personel Carrier is seen at an abandoned checkpoint in Olenivka, 20 km south of Donetsk, Sept. 1, 2014. According to villagers, the Ukranian army retreated on August 31, after a fierce fight with the Pro-Russians. Representatives of pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine are seeking a special status for the region, a report said Monday, in what would constitute a de facto division of the country.
Slavyansk
First graders attend a festive ceremony to mark the start of another school year in Slavyansk, Sept. 1, 2014. September 1 marks the start of a new academic year for students in Ukraine.
Mariupol
Ukrainian loyalists demonstrate by the last chekpoint controlled by Ukraine's army on the eastern side of Mariupol on Aug. 30, 2014.
Kiev
A military attache takes pictures while examining Russian-made artillery displayed in Kiev, Aug. 29, 2014. Russian weapons and artillery, seized by Ukrainian forces from pro-Russian separatists following clashes in the east of the country, were displayed for inspection by foreign military attaches accredited in Ukraine.
Convoy at Ukrainian border
A satellite image provided to Reuters by Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) taken by DigitalGlobe on August 21, 2014 shows what is reported by SHAPE a presence of Russian Self-Propelled Artillery in Ukraine. NATO believes well over 1,000 Russian troops are operating inside Ukraine, a NATO military officer said on Thursday. "We assess well over 1,000 Russian troops are now operating inside Ukraine," he said at NATO's military headquarters in southern Belgium. "They are supporting separatists (and) fighting with them."
Convoy at Ukrainian border
A satellite image provided to Reuters by Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) DigitalGlobe on Aug. 28, 2014 shows what is reported by SHAPE a presence of Russian Self-Propelled Artillery in Ukraine. NATO believes well over 1,000 Russian troops are operating inside Ukraine, a NATO military officer said on Thursday. "We assess well over 1,000 Russian troops are now operating inside Ukraine," he said at NATO's military headquarters in southern Belgium. "They are supporting separatists (and) fighting with them."
Convoy at Ukrainian border
A satellite image provided to Reuters by Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) taken by DigitalGlobe on August 21, 2014 shows what is reported by SHAPE a presence of Russian Self-Propelled Artillery in Ukraine. NATO believes well over 1,000 Russian troops are operating inside Ukraine, a NATO military officer said on Thursday. "We assess well over 1,000 Russian troops are now operating inside Ukraine," he said at NATO's military headquarters in southern Belgium. "They are supporting separatists (and) fighting with them."
Krasnodarovka
Military trucks travel through the steppe near the village of Krasnodarovka in Rostov region of Ukraine, Aug. 28, 2014. A Reuters reporter saw a column of armoured vehicles and dust-covered troops, one of them with an injured face, driving through the Russian steppe just across the border from a part of Ukraine which Kiev says is occupied by Russian troops. None of the men or vehicles had standard military identification marks, but the reporter saw a Mi-8 helicopter with a red star insignia -- consistent with Russian military markings -- land next to a nearby military first aid tent. The column was driving east away from the Ukrainian border across open countryside near the village of Krasnodarovka in Russia's Rostov region.
Donetsk
A Pro-Russian rebel walks in a passage at the local market damaged by shelling in Petrovskiy district in the town of Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, Aug. 26, 2014.
On Tuesday several shells hit the local market and nearby houses during the mortar duel between Pro-Russian rebels and Ukrainian army.
Mariupol
Ukrainian soldiers instruct local residents to seek refuge as shelling comes closer to the city of Mariupol in the village of Bezimenne, eastern Ukraine, Aug. 26, 2014.
Pro-Russian rebels opened a second front in southeast by the Azov Sea.
Novoazovsk
A smoke rises after shelling in the town of Novoazovsk, eastern Ukraine, Aug. 26, 2014.
Towering columns of smoke rose Tuesday from outside the city in Ukraine's far southeast after what residents said was a heavy artillery barrage. It was the second straight day that attacks were reported in the vicinity of Novoazovsk, which is in eastern Ukraine's separatist Donetsk region but previously had seen little fighting between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian rebels.
Donetsk
A man throws an egg at captured Ukrainian army prisoners as they're escorted by Pro-Russian rebels in a central square in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, Aug. 24, 2014.
Ukraine has retaken control of much of its eastern territory bordering Russia in the last few weeks, but fierce fighting for the rebel-held cities of Donetsk and Luhansk persists.
Donetsk
Official remove a corpse in a the street of Donetsk after a shelling, on August 28, 2014. Shelling kills 15 civilians in east Ukraine's Donetsk over the course of the day.
Deployment in Kiev
New volunteers of the Ukrainian interior ministry's special battalion "Sich" stand during a ceremony, where they will take an oath of allegiance to the country, in Kiev, Aug. 26, 2014.
Donetsk
Alexander Zakharchenko, prime minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, speaks to the media in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, Aug. 28, 2014. Zakharchenko said serving Russian soldiers, on leave from their posts, are fighting Ukrainian troops alongside the rebels, Russian state television reported.
Luhansk
An Ukrainian serviceman is seen at his position near the eastern Ukrainian town of Luhansk, Aug. 26, 2014.
Luhansk
Ukrainian servicemen sit at their positions in front of a small painting near the eastern Ukrainian town of Luhansk, Aug. 26, 2014.
Kramatorsk
A Ukrainian Mi-24 helicopter gunship flies above a military base in the eastern Ukrainian town of Kramatorsk, Aug. 26, 2014.
Luhansk
An Ukrainian serviceman walks near an unmarked grave at his position near the eastern Ukrainian town of Luhansk, Aug. 26, 2014.
Ilovaysk
An Ukrainian serviceman is seen at his position during fighting with pro-Russian separatists in the eastern Ukrainian town of Ilovaysk, Aug. 26, 2014.
Ilovaysk
Ukrainian servicemen fight with pro-Russian separatists in the eastern Ukrainian town of Ilovaysk, Aug. 26, 2014.
Ilovaysk
A Ukrainian serviceman takes cover during a firefight with pro-Russian separatists in the eastern Ukrainian town of Ilovaysk, Aug. 26, 2014.
Donetsk
Smoke billows over a residential apartment houses following shelling in the area in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, Aug. 24, 2014.
Debaltseve
Ukrainian soldiers detain a man suspected of spying for pro-Russian militants at a checkpoint near Debaltseve, Donetsk region, Aug. 16, 2014.