Pro-Russian separatists claim gains in Ukraine

(Vatican Radio) Pro-Russian separatists say they have encircled a key railway hub in eastern Ukraine, though Ukraine's military says its troops are still fighting along a supply road.

Officials say fighting in the region left nine Ukrainian troops and seven civilians dead since Monday.

The latest military struggle comes just hours after German chancellor Angela Merkel made clear she was against delivering lethal aid to embattled Ukrainian government forces in talks with the American president  and later the Canadian prime minister.

Listen to Stefan Bos’ report:

Pro-Russian separatists say they have encircled a railway hub in eastern Ukraine, though Ukraine's military claims it troops are still fighting along a supply road. Fighting in the region left nine Ukrainian troops and seven civilians dead since Monday, according to officials.

News of the latest military struggle comes just hours after German chancellor Angela Merkel made clear she was against delivering lethal aid to embattled Ukrainian government forces in talks with the American president and later the Canadian prime minister.  

In a setback for Kiev, Russian-backed rebels said they surrounded the town of Debaltseve, where several thousand residents are believed to remain trapped in shelters, without heat, electricity and running water. 

Capturing Debaltseve would mark a major victory for the fighters as it is a key railway connection between the rebel held cities of Donetsk and Luhansk.  However Ukraine's military said its forces are still fighting along a key supply road. 

ADDING PRESSURE

The clashes were expected to add to pressure on Wednesday's meeting between the French, German, Russian and Ukrainian leaders in Minsk, aimed at finding a diplomatic solution to the crisis in Ukraine. Despite the military setbacks for Kiev, German chancellor Angela Merkel opposes delivering heavy weapons to Ukrainian government forces to help them better battle pro-Russian separatists. 

During a joint White House news conference with U.S. President Barrack Obama she said she had not given up hope that diplomatic negotiations could produce a peace plan.  “We continue to pursue a diplomatic solution despite suffering setbacks and we will find out in the coming days whether there is a will on all sides for such a solution to be found,” Merkel explained. 

At a later press conference in Ottawa with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, the German chancellor added that "the conflict can not be solved by military means".

OBAMA CONSIDERING 

However President Obama made clear that he is considering whether the United States should for the first time send anti-tank weapons and other defensive weapons to Ukraine.  "If in fact diplomacy fails, what I've asked my team to do is to look at all options, what other means can we put in place to change Mr. Putin's calculus," Obama told reporters.  "And the possibility of lethal defensive weapons is one of those options that is being examined," he confirmed.  "But I have not made a decision about that yet," Obama added.  

As talks continue, so does the human suffering with the death toll rising far above previous estimates of more than 5,300 people in a conflict that also displaced nearly 1 million residents in Ukraine alone.