A last-ditch attempt to bring peace to eastern Ukraine will be put to the country’s leaders today amid warnings that failure to reach a settlement could lead to all-out war.

More than 5,300 people have been killed since the conflict began in April and around a million more have been forced to leave their homes to escape the fighting.

Last night, pro-Russian separatists intensified their shelling of government positions on all front lines and appeared to be massing forces for new attacks on the key railway town of Debaltseve and the coastal city of Mariupol, according to the Ukrainian military authorities.

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Pro-Russian separatists intensified their shelling of government positions and five Ukrainian soldiers were killed

Divisions: A pro-Russian rebel picks up a Ukrainian flag after a day of fighting in the eastern Ukraine

Destroyed: Seven civillians and five Ukrainian troops were killed in the fighting, which left a trail of destruction in the area

Fighting: The remains of a Ukrainian tank that was hit by a missile fired by pro-Russian separatist lies in Uglegorsk

The fighting has prompted Washington to consider giving lethal weapons to the Ukrainian government, but German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said this might make things worse

Five Ukrainian soldiers were killed and 26 wounded during a 24-hour period, a spokesman told a briefing in the capital, Kiev.

Meanwhile, the centre of the main regional city of Donetsk echoed with the sound of artillery blasts.

An official there said: ‘The situation is tense and we can hear powerful artillery fire but we have no immediate information about casualties and damage.’

In a dramatic intervention last night, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said the crisis in his country would remain unresolved unless it received political, economic and military support from allies in Europe and beyond.

Civilians flee their homes in Uglegorsk, Ukraine. Last night, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said the crisis in his country would remain unresolved unless it received political, economic and military support from allies in Europe and beyond

Defiance: Russia's Vladimir Putin may be at the centre of an international crisis, but he still found time to attend the first anniversary of the opening of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games today

Five Ukrainian soldiers were killed and 26 wounded during a 24-hour period, a spokesman told a briefing in the capital, Kiev

Talks: The peace plan was drawn up by France and Germany during four hours of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on Friday

Peace plan: Details remained under wraps last night but French President Francois Hollande said that one proposal was for a broader demilitarised zone and greater autonomy for eastern Ukraine

Accusations: America and Britain have accused Russia of supplying troops and military equipment to the separatists

Crisis: Pro-Russian rebels (pictured) have killed five Ukrainian soldiers in the last 24 hours alone

In an emotional plea at a security conference in Munich, he held up the red passports of Russian soldiers he said had been found on Ukrainian territory, calling them the ‘best evidence’ for the presence of foreign troops in his country.

Today’s peace plan was drawn up by France and Germany during four hours of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on Friday.

Details remained under wraps last night but French President Francois Hollande said that one proposal was for a broader demilitarised zone and greater autonomy for eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists are trying to establish a break-away state free from Kiev’s control.

Lethal: There have been both civilian and military fatalities in the rebel-held city of Donetsk (pictured)

War: The UN estimates over 5,000 people have died as a result of fighting in Ukraine since last April

War torn: Pro-Russian separatists (pictured) are thought to have killed over one thousand government troops

Diplomacy: Germany's Angela Merkel (left) and French President Francois Hollande (right) met with Russian President Vladimir Putin (centre) to push through a peace deal with Ukraine

Armed: Western nations have blamed Russia for arming separatists (pictured) in Ukraine - allegations that Moscow denies

Destruction: Donetsk's Sergey Prokofiev international airport, where brutal fighting has taken place, lies in ruins

Mr Hollande said the current negotiations were a last chance ‘because if we are not able to reach, not a compromise but a durable peace accord, we perfectly know the scenario: it has one name, it is called war’.

America and Britain have accused Russia of supplying troops and military equipment to the separatists. Mr Putin denies the claim and says the conflict is being fuelled by Western interference.

The fighting has prompted Washington to consider giving lethal weapons to the Ukrainian government, but German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said this might make things worse.

Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said Britain remained a ‘key player’ in efforts to end the conflict and dismissed as ‘ludicrous’ claims by Britain’s former top Nato commander, General Sir Richard Shirreff, that David Cameron had become a ‘diplomatic irrelevance’ in the crisis.

Bombing: The recent increase in violence and shelling of enemy areas in Ukraine has forced German and French leaders to try and broker another peace deal

Conflict: The UN estimates more than 5,000 people have died as a result of fighting in Eastern Ukraine since last April

Defending their territory: A pro-Russian separatist fighter stands guard at Donetsk's Sergey Prokofiev international airport, as shelling continues between Ukrainian army forces and pro-Russian separatist fighters

Casualties: Shelling by both government and rebel forces (pictured) has claimed civilian and military lives