REUTERS
The Obama administration says it is alarmed by a spike in violence in eastern Ukraine, blaming Russia for the conflict’s highest two-day casualty figures in the last 18 months, according to The Associated Press.
State Department spokesman John Kirby says six Ukrainian service members were killed and 33 wounded over the last two days in what he calls a "Russian-separatist attempt to seize additional Ukrainian territory," The Associated Press reported.
He says Russia is violating previous truce deals by supporting the rebels.
Read alsoFighting near Svitlodarsk: 1 KIA, 9 WIA in past 24 hoursKirby on Tuesday called on Moscow to pressure the separatists into stopping.
He said Washington supports a "cease-fire recommitment" to provide greater security to Ukrainians on all sides.