Ukraine's President warns of full-scale invasion

(Vatican Radio) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has warned of “a full-scale invasion" by Russia along the whole of the joint border after fierce fighting killed at least 24 people within 24 hours, while dozens more were believed to have been injured.

Click below to listen to correspondent Stefan Bos' report:

Poroshenko told Parliament in Kiev that as many as 9,000 Russian troops have already entered Ukrainian territory. Amid the violence the NATO military alliance said Thursday that Russia was delivering sophisticated weapons to rebels, charges Moscow denied. And the European Union called the fighting the worst since the ceasefire. The 28-nation bloc said the clashes risked creating "a new spiral of violence and suffering" in a conflict that already killed 6,400 people since fighting erupted in April last year. Legislators still applauded Poroshenko, but the commander-in-chief admitted that the army faces an uphill battle against Russian-backed separatists in the east. “A colossal threat of renewal of full scale military actions by the Russian terrorist groups remains, he said in a speech.

TACTICAL GROUPS

”Now on the territory of Ukraine there are fourteen Russian tactical groups with the total number of personnel exceeding 9,000 servicemen.” And for the first time he used the word invasion to describe the current situation on the battle field, where dozens of rebels, troops and civilians have reportedly been killed since Wednesday. “The military must be ready as much for a renewal of an offensive by the enemy in the Donbass [region] as they are for a full-scale invasion along the whole length of the border with Russia. We must truly ready for this,” he said. Poroshenko admitted that the army brought back heavy artillery after withdrawing them from the frontlines in violation of a European-brokered shaky ceasefire agreement. But he said the weapons were needed to rebuke an attack by Russian soldiers, referring to a 12-hour firefight involving artillery on both sides near the town of Maryinka. Russian President Vladimir Putin is to meet Pope Francis next week with the conflict in Ukraine expected to be among the topics being discussed.