WASHINGTON, November 7 (RIA Novosti) — The United States does not see a reason to question Kiev allegations that independence supporters are responsible for the shelling of a school in Donetsk, but is nevertheless waiting for the results of the Ukrainian investigation, US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki has said.
"No reason to question it [allegations], but obviously there will be an investigation, so we'll see how that investigation is completed," Psaki said at a press briefing Thursday, adding that the United States fully supports Kiev's probe into the matter.
Two students were killed and four sustained injuries of varying severity on Wednesday as a projectile hit a sports school in Donetsk in eastern Ukraine. A man living near the school was also hospitalized with severe injuries.
According to the Russian Investigative Committee, Ukrainian forces carried out the shelling of the school on the command of Ukraine's Ministry of Defense and the National Guard. Russian prosecutors have opened a criminal case over the incident.
Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council has also launched a criminal case, blaming the Donetsk militia for carrying out the attack.
The crisis in Ukraine's southeast escalated when Kiev authorities launched a military operation against independence supporters in the region in mid-April.
The conflicting sides reached a ceasefire agreement at a September 5 meeting of the trilateral Contact Group on Ukraine in Minsk. A memorandum specifying the implementation of the ceasefire was adopted at another Contact Group meeting on September 19.
Both sides have subsequently accused each other of violating the truce. A special monitoring mission deployed in the conflict-torn region by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) has also reported instances of shelling after the ceasefire.
