US accused of preparing attack campaign in eastern Ukraine

"Our intelligence service detected a large number of foreign mercenaries in the 56th motorized infantry brigade and the 406th artillery brigade of Ukraine stationed near the village of Urzuf,"Sputnik"In addition, a group of high-ranking US and Canadian military officers arrived at the headquarters of the Ukrainian army's Eastern Operations Command. It is not excluded that they are preparing to launch an attack," Daniil Bezsonov, spokesman for the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), said today.

Bezsonov warned that the presence of foreign forces means Ukraine is preparing to escalate the conflict in the Donbass region.

The Donetsk army statement came shortly after DPR leader Alexander Zakharchenko was killed in a bomb attack in Donetsk.

After Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula, separatist forces in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine declared their independence from the country on April 7, 2014, and established an independent republic. However, Donetsk was only recognized by Russia and South Ossetia.

The conflict between separatists and Ukrainian government forces in the east has lasted more than four years, killing nearly 10,000 people. Kiev and its Western allies say the separatists are supported by the Russian military, an accusation Moscow denies.