Russia was accused of sending tanks into Ukraine for the first time yesterday while the West’s attention was diverted by the chaos in Iraq. The development threatens to destroy the tentative peace process just when the US and EU had hoped Vladimir Putin had agreed to ease tension. Three T-72 tanks were in Snizhne, some 13 miles inside Ukraine, backed up by armoured personnel carriers, claimed Kiev. It was initially not clear if the tanks were Russian or under  the control of separatist forces sympathetic  to Moscow. Russia uses T-72 tanks but Ukraine does not. Scroll down for video . Russia was accused of sending tanks into Ukraine today with Kiev claiming three T-72 tanks entered the country in Snizhne - some 13 miles inside Ukraine. It comes as attention was diverted to chaos in Iraq . Video footage appeared to show  tanks moving towards Horlivka - a mining city in the Donetsk region of Ukraine. Russia has repeatedly claimed it would not invade Ukraine, having annexed the Crimean peninsula . Russia has repeatedly claimed it would not invade eastern Ukraine, even though it annexed the Crimean peninsula in March. Two . of the three tanks moved towards Horlivka – a mining city in Donetsk . region twinned with Barnsley – and one remained in Snizhne. Ukrainian forces attacked the convoy, claimed Kiev interior minister Arsen Avakov. ‘Over . the last three days, despite Russia’s statements welcoming the peace . process, a column has been sneaking into the area of Dyakove through . checkpoints seized by terrorists,’ he said. ‘We have registered the passage of a  column including APCs, armoured vehicles with cannons. ‘Today we see three tanks which, according to our information, crossed the border and were in Snizhne.’ Mr Avakov claimed there was a ‘fight’ going on with the column – which was not believed to be displaying Russian colours. ‘Part of this column has been destroyed,’ he said. Ukraine's interior minister has accused Russia of allowing three tanks and other military vehicles to cross the border to help pro-Russain separatists. Pictured are pro-Russian rebels in Snizhnye in eastern Ukraine . Russia did not immediately respond to the accusations but Reuters correspondents have reported seeing three tanks in the border town of Snizhnye in east Ukraine. Pictured is a Ukrainian tank during a battle with pro-Russian separatists at Slovyansk last week . The . shock development came amid an upsurge in fighting, with separatists . claiming to have stalled a column of 40 Ukrainian tanks near Lugansk. Separately, . Russia accused Ukraine of using banned weapons – incendiary bombs – in . its attempts to seize back  control of the separatist stronghold city . of Slavyansk. This charge was denied  by Kiev. ‘Ukrainian . defence forces and nationalists are using prohibited weapons against . Slavyansk civilians, firing on refugees and killing children,’ said . Russia’s human rights ombudsman Konstantin Dolgov. ‘Kiev’s . humanitarian crimes against its residents in the south-east are . multiplying. They must be investigated and the guilty punished.’ Incendiary . devices are designed to set off fires and were used widely during the . Vietnam war. They are banned by the UN Convention on Certain . Conventional Weapons. Russia has denied aiding the separatists, who have taken control of several towns and cities in mainly Russian-speaking east Ukraine . A pro-Russian fighter stands guard at a checkpoint in Slovyansk, eastern Ukraine. The Kremlin today announced Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Vladimir Putin had discussed moves to end violence in east Ukraine . A pro-Russian fighter guards men detained for looting in Slovyansk, eastern Ukraine . Ukraine’s . National Guard, a part-volunteer force heavily involved in the eastern . campaign, dismissed the incendiary bomb charges as absurd. Russian . foreign minister Sergei Lavrov warned that Ukraine has failed to make . any progress in efforts to stop the violence and halt military . operations, adding: ‘This is causing increasing concern.’ Separatist . leaders in Donetsk and Lugansk yesterday announced they planned to let . the Russian rouble circulate in territories which have declared . unilateral independence from Ukraine. They also intend open borders with Russia within two years. The . developments come just five days after Ukraine’s leader Petro . Poroshenko was sworn in, promising to end fighting in the east of the . country this week. Western . leaders thought Putin had agreed to a package to ease tension  in . Ukraine during last week’s D-day  commemoration in France.
Interior Minister Arseny Avakov said tanks entered Ukraine through checkpoint controlled by pro-Russian separatists in the Luhansk region .
Russia has denied aiding the separatists, .
who have taken control of several towns and cities in mainly .
Russian-speaking east Ukraine .
President Vladimir Putin has also promised to tighten controls at borders .
Russia was accused of sending tanks into Ukraine for the first time yesterday while the West’s attention was diverted by the chaos in Iraq. The development threatens to destroy the tentative peace process just when the US and EU had hoped Vladimir Putin had agreed to ease tension. Three T-72 tanks were in Snizhne, some 13 miles inside Ukraine, backed up by armoured personnel carriers, claimed Kiev. It was initially not clear if the tanks were Russian or under  the control of separatist forces sympathetic  to Moscow. Russia uses T-72 tanks but Ukraine does not. Scroll down for video . Russia was accused of sending tanks into Ukraine today with Kiev claiming three T-72 tanks entered the country in Snizhne - some 13 miles inside Ukraine. It comes as attention was diverted to chaos in Iraq . Video footage appeared to show  tanks moving towards Horlivka - a mining city in the Donetsk region of Ukraine. Russia has repeatedly claimed it would not invade Ukraine, having annexed the Crimean peninsula . Russia has repeatedly claimed it would not invade eastern Ukraine, even though it annexed the Crimean peninsula in March. Two . of the three tanks moved towards Horlivka – a mining city in Donetsk . region twinned with Barnsley – and one remained in Snizhne. Ukrainian forces attacked the convoy, claimed Kiev interior minister Arsen Avakov. ‘Over . the last three days, despite Russia’s statements welcoming the peace . process, a column has been sneaking into the area of Dyakove through . checkpoints seized by terrorists,’ he said. ‘We have registered the passage of a  column including APCs, armoured vehicles with cannons. ‘Today we see three tanks which, according to our information, crossed the border and were in Snizhne.’ Mr Avakov claimed there was a ‘fight’ going on with the column – which was not believed to be displaying Russian colours. ‘Part of this column has been destroyed,’ he said. Ukraine's interior minister has accused Russia of allowing three tanks and other military vehicles to cross the border to help pro-Russain separatists. Pictured are pro-Russian rebels in Snizhnye in eastern Ukraine . Russia did not immediately respond to the accusations but Reuters correspondents have reported seeing three tanks in the border town of Snizhnye in east Ukraine. Pictured is a Ukrainian tank during a battle with pro-Russian separatists at Slovyansk last week . The . shock development came amid an upsurge in fighting, with separatists . claiming to have stalled a column of 40 Ukrainian tanks near Lugansk. Separately, . Russia accused Ukraine of using banned weapons – incendiary bombs – in . its attempts to seize back  control of the separatist stronghold city . of Slavyansk. This charge was denied  by Kiev. ‘Ukrainian . defence forces and nationalists are using prohibited weapons against . Slavyansk civilians, firing on refugees and killing children,’ said . Russia’s human rights ombudsman Konstantin Dolgov. ‘Kiev’s . humanitarian crimes against its residents in the south-east are . multiplying. They must be investigated and the guilty punished.’ Incendiary . devices are designed to set off fires and were used widely during the . Vietnam war. They are banned by the UN Convention on Certain . Conventional Weapons. Russia has denied aiding the separatists, who have taken control of several towns and cities in mainly Russian-speaking east Ukraine . A pro-Russian fighter stands guard at a checkpoint in Slovyansk, eastern Ukraine. The Kremlin today announced Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Vladimir Putin had discussed moves to end violence in east Ukraine . A pro-Russian fighter guards men detained for looting in Slovyansk, eastern Ukraine . Ukraine’s . National Guard, a part-volunteer force heavily involved in the eastern . campaign, dismissed the incendiary bomb charges as absurd. Russian . foreign minister Sergei Lavrov warned that Ukraine has failed to make . any progress in efforts to stop the violence and halt military . operations, adding: ‘This is causing increasing concern.’ Separatist . leaders in Donetsk and Lugansk yesterday announced they planned to let . the Russian rouble circulate in territories which have declared . unilateral independence from Ukraine. They also intend open borders with Russia within two years. The . developments come just five days after Ukraine’s leader Petro . Poroshenko was sworn in, promising to end fighting in the east of the . country this week. Western . leaders thought Putin had agreed to a package to ease tension  in . Ukraine during last week’s D-day commemoration in France.
Russia has denied aiding the separatists, who have taken control of several towns and cities in mainly Russian-speaking east Ukraine . A and Vladimir Putin had discussed moves to end