DHAKA: Over 20 people have died in violence in eastern Ukraine as the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany prepare for peace talks.

Nineteen Ukrainian soldiers were killed, many in a town that pro-Russian rebels say they have surrounded.

Five people were reported killed by shelling in rebel-held Donetsk, reports the BBC.

The talks in the Belarusian capital Minsk are set to focus on securing a ceasefire, withdrawal of heavy weapons and creating a demilitarized zone.

But negotiators are still trying to narrow differences ahead of the summit, to be attended by Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko, as well as Francois Hollande of France and Germany’s Angela Merkel.

BDST: 1730 HRS, FEB 11, 2015