Ukraine's army said the explosions occurred during a planned disposal of outdated ammunition at a military base near the city of Kharkiv.

The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces confirmed the death of the two military sappers on Facebook.

Four other soldiers were hospitalised, with three of them in a grave condition, it said, adding that there were "no threats to local residents and infrastructure" and the blasts had stopped.

Two similar incidents happened at the same facility over the past two years. In March 2017, a large fire triggered explosions there, killing one person and injuring five.

Kiev has been fighting Moscow-backed separatist in eastern Ukraine since 2014 in a conflict that has killed more than 13,000 people.

Stockpiles of outdated ammunition dating back to the Soviet era often cause fires and explosions in Ukraine and Russia.

dg/ma/har

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