Ukraine says Russia is engaging in 'provocative shelling' on the border as pro-Kremlin militants claim the opposite

• Ukraine accused Russia of "provocative shelling" on Thursday.
• Meanwhile, a Russia-backed rebel group said Ukraine was taking military action to provoke Russia.

Ukraine accused Russia of "provocative shelling" amid fears Russia was preparing to invade, while Russia-backed militants accused Ukraine of provoking Russia.

The situation between the two countries is so tense that any exchange could lead to further action and spiral into a wider conflict.

A senior Ukrainian government source accused Russian-backed separatist forces of shelling in eastern Ukraine on Thursday, telling Reuters that the amount was unusual.

"It is not typical. It looks a lot like a provocation," they said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also tweeted on Thursday that there was some "provocative shelling, in particular in Stanytsia Luhanska."

But the Luhansk People's Republic's militia, a Russia-backed rebel group, said Ukraine was taking military action to provoke Russia.

Russia's state-run news agency Tass reported that Yan Leshchenko, the group's head, said in the group's Telegram channel on Thursday: "Over the past 24 hours, the situation at the line of combat engagement has significantly escalated. The adversary, following direct orders of Kyiv's military-political leadership, is undertaking attempts to aggravate the conflict."

Ukrainian officials shared photos of a kindergarten that they said was damaged in the shelling, Reuters reported.

Ukraine said two teachers were injured, the journalist Alec Luhn reported.

Russia has repeatedly denied having plans to invade Ukraine, and said on Tuesday that it was withdrawing some troops from the two countries' shared border.

But both the US and NATO said Russia appeared, on the contrary, to be increasing its troop presence there.

The US previously warned that Russia may stage an attack to justify entering Ukraine. As Insider's John Haltiwanger reported, Russia has a history of using misdirection as a military tactic.