An explosion ripped through a coal mine before dawn in war-torn eastern Ukraine, killing one miner and trapping more than 30 others underground, rebel and government officials said.

Russian president Vladimir Putin has suggested that the US is already delivering weapons to Ukraine.

Russian president Vladimir Putin has suggested that the United States is already delivering weapons to Ukraine.

Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine have said they will begin withdrawing heavy weaponry from the sections of the front line where the ceasefire holds.

A ceasefire that went into effect today in eastern Ukraine appears largely to be holding, except around the strategic railway hub of Debaltseve.