Clashes with machine guns reported near Avdiyivka close to midnight

Officer of Moscow region military unit, during his trial on death of conscript, asked the court to consider his "involvement in conflict in neighboring country, where said no Russian involvement"

Car exploded in Kharkiv in possible assassination attempt on local businessman. He and his 2 bodyguards are safe

The EU has prolonged its economic sanctions on Russia by six months. Will be in the EU official journal on Monday - a week before the Helsinki meeting between Trump and Putin

Ukraine launches the first khakaton on security and defense issues with the support of @NATO

Man shot dead in Kyiv on Schuseva street

Ukraine invited Russia to hold expanded meeting in Minsk with the participation of ombudsmen to discuss the exchange of political prisoners of the Kremlin

We strongly emphasize the course of Ukraine's integration into the EU and NATO - President Poroshenko signed the Law "On National Security of Ukraine"

Reports of new checkpoints and raids across Occupied Donbas

Hungary opposes inclusion of Black Sea in the title of event with participation of presidents of Georgia and Ukraine at the upcoming alliance summit in Brussels.

President Poroshenko at NSDC meeting signed a law on "National Security of Ukraine"

Oleg Sentsov's cousin Natalia Kaplan says she saw him in prison for two hours, he has lost 15 kg on hunger strike and weighs 75 kg. She says he's grateful for the support he's getting, but says not enough attention is being paid to the other prisoners.

Hug: Recommitment – with low levels of violence – is an opportunity to build trust, to implement Minsk in good faith. A window of opportunity is open. Time to withdraw weapons, disengage, and de-mine; and make ceasefire real Ukraine MinskAgreements

Hug: Sustainable lasting ceasefire is possible if measures – weapons withdrawal, disengagement, demining – are taken. There must be full compliance; with all provisions agreed in Minsk MinskAgreements

Hug: Discipline and the will to ceasefire is not enough for a sustainable ceasefire. Cycle of violence re-emerges after every recommitment; madness only interrupted by short periods of sanity Ukraine

Hug: Despite Minsk Memorandum and TCG's Decision on Mine Action – which prohibit the laying of new mines and oblige the signatories to remove all previously-laid mines – mines are everywhere along contact line

Hug: Conflict fought not because of historical divisions or hatred; fought because armed men and soldiers are ordered to fight. When ordered to stop, they largely comply. With every recommitment, there is dramatic reduction in level of violence Ukraine

Hug: Non-compliance has real consequences for real people. Last week another 6 people were injured, bringing this year's total to 150 civiliancasualties – 29 fatalities and 121 injuries

Hug: Last week 51 heavy weapons in violation of withdrawal lines – 31 in govt-ctrl and 20 in non-govt-ctrl areas. Since 1 Jan, over 2,000 weapons in violation; evenly split on either side of the contact line ukraineconflict

Hug: As a whole, last week was not without examples of non-compliance with the Minsk agreements. The sides fired weapons 8,292 times; 50% increase on previous week. Since 1 Jan, over 140,000 ceasefire violations incl almost 6,000 uses of proscribed weapons

Hug: Recommitment and consequent reduction in numberof ceasefire violations demonstrates that when the sides want to cease fire,they can. The difference between compliance and non-compliance – the differencebetween normality and violence – is the will to make it happen. Ukraine

Hug: Last week's recommitment to the ceasefire has brought tangible results with a steady decline in ceasefire violations since then, especially pronounced since the recommitment came into effect on 1 July. ukraineconflict

Hostage of "DNR" group, journalist Stanislav Aseev(Vasin) declared hunger strike

On Ukraine parliament agenda today is bill that would allow security service to block websites without court order, supposedly in name of national security. Critics including internet freedom groups and pro-Kyiv hacktivists warn it would lead to censorship.

Russian occupation authorities in Crimea have sentenced Volodymyr Balukh to 5 years in colony

Romanian parliament says would back reunification with Moldova

Several hundreds of miners protest near Verkhovna Rada, demand independent funding of coal industry

Police: LGBTi community office was attacked in Kharkiv last night

OSCE SMM news briefing by Alexander Hug today at @uacrisis at 13:00. LIVE here:

Joint forces: 19 attacks on Ukrainian positions yesterday, 4 soldiers were wounded

Video from Zolote-4 village, newly controlled by Ukrainian army(earlier - in gray zone)

Joint Forces held drills on the shore of Azov Sea

China's ambitions in eastern Europe to face scrutiny at summit

Russia's coast guards detain seven ships off Ukraine coast in Sea of Azov since Monday evening

EU sanctions on Russia will be officially rolled over on Monday until end Jan 2019, EU officials say

Former "DNR militiaman" Dmitry Havchenko aka Moryachok buys cryptocurrency stock exchange Wex with a daily turnover of $20 million - the successor to the closed BTC-e. "Orthodox oligarch" Konstantin Malofeev money could be behind "Moryachok"

MFA: With The second sentence of the Baluh Russia goes beyond the common sense