10.07am GMT

Ukraine’s acting interior minister says two people have been killed and several wounded in a shootout in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv.

Arsen Avakov wrote on his official Facebook page early today that around 30 people “from both sides” were arrested during a shootout late on Friday.

Russian state news agency Itar Tass reports that shots were fired from the offices of the far-right Ukrainian nationalist group, Right Sector.

But Reuters reports that the Ukrainian authorities have accused Russia of provoking the gunfight.

Kharkiv’s governor accused Russian activists of fomenting violence and urged people not to be goaded into fighting back.



“Tonight’s incident was a well planned provocation by pro-Russian activists,” said Ihor Baluta.



He said people on a minibus had deliberately provoked a dispute with a group holding a pro-Russia demonstration before driving off again.



Pro-Russian activists came in pursuit and found the van parked by a building containing offices of Ukrainian nationalist groups, and fighting began.



“Hired provocateurs from a neighbouring country are staging professional provocations,” Avakov said. He accused allies of ousted, Moscow-backed president Viktor Yanukovich of financing unrest in eastern Ukraine, aided by “extremist Russian forces”.

Violence has escalated in Ukraine’s Russia-leaning east in recent days, as pro-Russia demonstrators have seized government buildings and clashed with supporters of the new Kiev government. At least one person died and 17 were wounded in clashes in the city of Donetsk on Thursday.



The violence overnight follows the failure yesterday of 11th-hour talks in London between the US secretary of state, John Kerry, and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov.