Separatist leader severs trade ties with Ukraine over rail blockade

Head of the separatist self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic Alexander Zakharchenko visits the Yuzovsky metallurgical plant in Donetsk, Ukraine, March 1, 2017. REUTERS/Alexander Ermochenko

KIEV (Reuters) - The main pro-Russian separatist leader in Ukraine said on Friday he would cut economic ties between rebel territory and the rest of the country, following through on an ultimatum to end trade if the government did not halt a rail blockade.

The blockade by an autonomous group of Ukrainian lawmakers and military veterans has stopped rail shipments from separatist-controlled areas, causing economic hardship on both sides of the eastern front line as it has hit coal and steel producers, the regions' main employers.