REUTERS

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said he is concerned about OSCE reports about new fighting in Donbas, the German Foreign Office wrote on Twitter.

"FM #Steinmeier concerned about @OSCE reports about escalating fighting in eastern #Ukraine. All parties involved are called upon to adhere to letter and spirit of Minsk agreements and to cease shelling," the tweet reads.

"We should closely watch that the Minsk agreements are being implemented smoothly," German DW.de quoted Steinmeier as saying.

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According to him, all open issues should be resolved quickly within the contact group, otherwise it will be almost impossible to avoid a new military escalation of the Donbas conflict. The politician also called on Russian-backed militants and the Ukrainian army to immediately cease attacks.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) earlier reported about the aggravation of the conflict in eastern Ukraine. According to the latest report, OSCE monitors recorded the escalation of hostilities in the village of Shyrokyne on Friday.

"On 27 March, the SMM observed from an observation point in the vicinity of Berdianske (government-controlled, 18km east of Mariupol) escalating fighting in Shyrokyne ("Donetsk People’s Republic" ("DPR")-controlled, 20km east of Mariupol, 102 km south of Donetsk) counting over 225 mortar shells from 14:40hrs to 17:15hrs. The shelling had started only a few hours following an SMM visit to the "DPR" "command" in Shyrokyne," the OSCE monitors said in their daily report issued on March 28.

The OSCE SMM to Ukraine also reported that on March 28, at approximately 10:45hrs the SMM en route to Novoazovsk ("DPR"- controlled, 45km east of Mariupol) was halted at a "DPR" roadblock at the northern edge of Shyrokyne. A "DPR" fighter at the roadblock approached the SMM in a hostile way and ordered the SMM to depart the scene immediately. The "DPR" fighter was handling his weapon in a manner demonstrating to SMM that he would have no hesitation to use it.

OSCE monitors note that the same aggressive attitude had been displayed towards SMM during a visit to Shyrokyne on the previous day, when the "DPR" "commander" told the SMM that it would need a "DPR" escort when entering their territory. "While the SMM turned around its vehicles to leave the roadblock, the "DPR" fighter fired three shots into the air. The SMM arrived safely to Mariupol at 12:05hrs," the report reads.

As UNIAN reported earlier, the Ukrainian authorities on Saturday accused militants of using Grad multiple rocket launchers in Luhansk region, the other party to the conflict in turn complained about violations of the ceasefire by Ukrainian troops.