Kerry slams 'brazen' Russian behavior

During his meeting with his British counterpart Philip Hammond in London on Saturday, Kerry said Russia's conduct was "completely counter to what the international community" worked for in the Ukraine ceasefire.

Over a week since the repeatedly violated ceasefire was agreed in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, Kerry said the US and its allies were "not going to play this game" with Russia and "be part of this kind of extraordinarily craven behavior."

"Russia has engaged in an absolutely brazen and cyclical process over these last days," Kerry said, adding that further sanctions against Russia were not off the cards.

Ongoing attacks

Ukraine's military and separatist rebels accused each other on Saturday of continuing to mount attacks. Kyiv rejected the allegations, saying that the government units would only respond to "provocations."

An advisor to Ukraine's president wrote on his Facebook page on Saturday that Uktraine had lost 179 troops over the last month alone in the battle for the key town of Debaltseve.

Separatist rebels took control of the town in the attack, one of the bloodiest losses suffered by Ukraine during the 10-month conflict.

Prisoner exchange

Later on Saturday, the rebels' official for human rights, Daria Morozova, also said that around 40 prisoners, some of whom are wounded, would be handed over from each side in the city of Lugansk.

"Today there will be an exchange between us and the Ukrainian side," Morozova said.

There was no immediate confirmation of the swap from the Ukrainian side, though smaller exchanges have taken place in recent weeks with little media coverage.

As part of the most recent truce, both sides agreed to carry out a prisoner exchange, conduct negotiations on greater autonomy in rebel-held areas, and eventually restore Ukraine's control over all of its border with Russia, and withdraw heavy weapons from the frontline by March 3 - none of which have been completed so far.

ksb/bk (Reuters, AFP, AP, dpa)