Here is today's map of the security situation in eastern Ukraine, according to the National Security and Defense Council:
So now Vladimir Putin says he supports sending UN peacekeepers to the Donbas. And since this is something Ukraine has been requesting for years, this must be good news, right? Watch today's Daily Vertical commentary by RFE/RL's Brian Whitmore:
Another item from RFE/RL's news desk:
Ukrainian Political Analysts, Journalist, Activist Die In Car Crash
Authorities in Ukraine say three political analysts, a journalist, and an activist died in a traffic accident in the western region of Rivne on September 6.
Anton Herashchenko, a lawmaker and adviser to Interior Minister Arsen Avakov, wrote on Facebook that political observers Oleksandr Maslak, Oleksiy Kurinniy, and Oleksandr Nikanorov, journalist Volodymyr Karahyaur, and activist Serhiy Popov were killed and that the early morning crash was being investigated.
Ukraine's national police said earlier that four men died after the car they were in collided with a truck. The fifth man in the car died hours later in a hospital, it said.
The police report did not identify the men.
Kyiv-based journalist Bohdana Babych wrote on Facebook that the five were returning to Kyiv from Poland after taking part in a conference.
Explainer: Does Putin's Peacekeeper Proposal For Ukraine Have Any Merit?
Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed sending a UN peacekeeping force into the conflict zone in eastern Ukraine, but is the idea new or even viable and could it even help ease or end the conflict there? Read More