A DELICATE ceasefire in the Ukraine agreed to only last week may already be under threat after shelling reported in the country's south.

Shelling was reportedly heard in the Ukraine's southern city Mariupol, just days after Russian President Vladimir Putin reached the deal with Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko.

The original ceasefire, brokered over the phone by the two leaders, was meant to lead to a permanent ceasefire after Russian-backed rebels invaded the country several months ago.

• Streakers 'a pain in the backside' - All Blacks coach
• Pilot radioed twice to save plane before fatal crash
• US mother killed by stone gargoyle falling off church
• Faulty printer outs PE teacher's relationship with student
• NASA astronauts give geography lesson from orbit

But media reports on Saturday, including by a BBC correspondent in Mariupol, claimed fire and smoke followed explosions in the disputed region where government forces were fighting with rebels on the weekend.

The reported shelling followed a NATO meeting late last week where Poroshenko, joined by other European leaders and United States President Barack Obama, urged Putin to pull troops and rebels out of Ukraine. - APN NEWSDESK