An elderly man pretending to bring Ukrainian troops a jar of honey turned out to be an attacker in disguise, with the gift exploding and killing a soldier, a local official said Saturday.

An elderly man pretending to bring Ukrainian troops a jar of honey turned out to be an attacker in disguise, with the gift exploding and killing a soldier, a local official said Saturday.

The incident occurred at a checkpoint in the country's war-torn east on Friday.

The man identifying himself as a local resident in Stanicya Lugans'ka in the Lugansk region handed the soldiers a three-litre jar of honey and thanked them for their service before walking away, said Lugansk regional governor Hennadiy Moskal.

"When the soldiers tried to taste the honey, the jar exploded (there was an explosive device inside)," Moskal posted on his website. "One soldier was killed and three others were seriously injured."

It appeared to be the first such incident since the war broke out in Ukraine's east in April 2014. More than 4,800 people have been killed in the conflict.

A recent upsurge in fighting has cast further doubts on planned peace talks aimed at ending the war, with a September truce frequently violated.

Clashes have been centered around the Donetsk airport, a wrecked shell repeatedly hit by battles but still of symbolic and strategic importance.