Denis Pushilin

• 3 Killed in Ukraine As Lawmakers Adopt Law On Status of Rebel East

  Ukraine's parliament on Tuesday adopted two bills enshrining greater autonomy for areas controlled by pro-Russian rebels, in line with a peace deal that continues to be marred by deadly skirmishes.

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  New Ukraine Peace Talks to Take Place on Wednesday: Rebels

  A meeting of a so-called contact group aimed at ending violence in eastern Ukraine is planned for Wednesday, Russian state television quoted Denis Pushilin, vice speaker of the separatists' "People's Council" leadership body, as saying.

• Pushed From Slaviansk, Ukraine Rebels Barricade Donetsk

  Pro-Russian rebels erected new barricades on the streets of Donetsk on Monday, preparing to make a stand in the city of a million people after losing their bastion in the town of Slaviansk in the worst defeat of their three-month uprising.

• Blast Rocks Center of Breakaway Town in Eastern Ukraine

  An explosion has shaken the center of the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk, where pro-Russian separatists have taken over a regional administration building.

• Ukraine Military Battles Rebels for Control of Donetsk Airport

  Ukrainian paratroopers and pro-Russian rebels on Tuesday were battling for control of Donetsk airport after a day of intense firefights that marked a sharp escalation of the conflict in the east of the country.

• Your Rebellion Needs You, Plead Ukraine Insurgents

  Rebel leaders in eastern Ukraine launched a desperate appeal on Sunday for more fighters to join their insurgency against Kiev's rule, saying even women were welcome.

• Armed Men in Eastern Ukraine Open Fire on Crowd

  Armed men identified as Ukrainian national guard opened fire on Sunday on a crowd outside a town hall in eastern Ukraine, and an official for the region's insurgents said there were fatalities.

• Ukraine Security Forces Riven by Mistrust, Wrangle Over Prisoners

  The two men crouched in the shade of a tree. The ballot papers they were accused of forging lay on the front of their Russian-made Moskvich car, stopped and searched by Ukrainian soldiers on the outskirts of the port city of Mariupol, in the country's rebel southeast.

• Ukraine Rebels Snub Vladimir Putin, Will Press Ahead with Referendum

  Pro-Moscow rebels fighting in east Ukraine vowed Thursday to press on with a disputed independence referendum, ignoring a call from President Vladimir Putin to postpone the vote in a bid to ease tensions.

• Ukraine in 'pivotal period' as deal stalls, US warns Russia

  Russia was under intense US pressure on Saturday to convince pro-Moscow rebels in Ukraine to give up eastern towns they are occupying, after Washington said the situation in the former Soviet republic was in a "pivotal period".