Ukraine cease-fire goes into effect amid unease

Ukrainian soldiers
(Image credit: Brendan Hoffman / Getty Images)

After months of escalating clashes, Ukrainian and pro-Russian separatists pulled back on Sunday as a cease-fire agreement went into place at midnight.

Fighting between the two sides ramped up in recent days, but the new truce appeared to be holding in the early hours despite reports of isolated skirmishes. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko announced shortly after midnight Sunday that he had ordered his troops to stand down, though he added Kiev would not "turn the other cheek" should the rebels violate the truce.

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Jon Terbush

Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.