"The Secretary-General remains gravely concerned over the situation in eastern Ukraine, particularly the plight of civilians trapped without basic services in the city of Debaltseve," the United Nations said in a Wednesday statement, stressing that "civilians are dying on a daily basis".
According to the statement, Ban Ki-moon is calling on both sides in the Ukrainian conflict "to immediately move their military positions away from densely populated civilian areas" in order to create a safe route for the people to leave the city.
Earlier, the head of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) urged all sides of the Ukrainian conflict to establish a temporary ceasefire agreement that would allow for the creation of humanitarian corridors in areas affected by deadly military action, especially around Debaltseve.
On Wednesday, officials of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) reported uncovering Kiev's plans to attack civilian targets in the town of Debaltseve, ahead of this week's Munich Security Conference.
Debaltseve, which is located in the Donetsk region, has been at the forefront of increased clashes between local militia and Kiev forces that launched a military operation in Ukraine's southeast last spring. Thousands of Ukrainian troops are currently trapped within in the city, and pro-independence forces surround the area.