The peace plan that was meant to solve the crisis in Eastern Ukraine is once again facing a difficult test, after Ukraine and Russia debate over the next steps that must be taken to enforce the agreement.

Moscow became upset after Ukraine agreed on Tuesday to grant special status to some of its areas that are under the control of the Russian-backed rebels, and eventually grant them limited self-rule. However, this is applicable only under the condition that local elections must first be held in these places.

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Ukraine says  this follows the Ukrainian Law. But rebel leaders find this prospect unacceptable, since they have already proclaimed their own "people's republics" in parts of Ukraine that they have seized.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says, "We are today further from realizing the Minsk peace agreement thatn we were a few days ago."

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov have accused the Ukrainian Parliament of revising the agreement reached between Ukraine, Russia and the western powers in Minsk, Belarus last month. This development does not surprise Ukraine Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk.

He says no one in the Ukranian side believed that Russia "and the terrorists" will follow the Minsk plan anyway.

In a televised government meeting, Yatseniuk said that the Russian rebels must leave Ukrainian territory, in line with the agreement.

"First and foremost, to comply with the Minsk agreement, the Russian bandits must clear out of the territory of Ukraine and give the possibility to Ukraine of carrying out honest and transparent elections in line with international standards," Yatseniuk stated.

The new tension between Russia and Ukraine exposes the different strategies the two countries are looking at, on the issue of self-rule in eastern Ukraine.

The crisis in Ukraine has already claimed the lives of over 6,000 people.

Fighting has relatively subsided, although a large part of Ukraine's industrial zones are under rebel control. These include the big cities of Donetsk and Luhansk.

TagsRussia, Ukraine, pro-Russia separatists, Ukraine crisis