News and press releases

GENEVA, Switzerland, 20 June 2018- The 44th round of the Geneva International Discussions has just concluded...

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region, compared with the previous 24 hours. The Mission observed fresh damage caused by shelling in residential areas of Pikuzy and Novotoshkivske. Small arms were fired in the direction of an SMM unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) near Petrivske, assessed as targeting the UAV. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations near the Zolote and the Petrivske disengagement areas. The Mission’s access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas, and was also restricted near Izvaryne and Sievernyi at the border with the Russian Federation as well as near Holmivskyi and Zachativka. The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near Oleksandropil and Khlibodarivka. It continued to facilitate the operation of the Donetsk Filtration Station, including through monitoring the security situation around the station. The SMM facilitated and monitored repairs of the water distribution network in Stanytsia Luhanska, the Petrivske pumping station near Artema and the Zolote-Popasna water pipeline. In Odessa, the Mission monitored a gathering in front of the Consulate General of the Russian Federation...

Kamensk-Shakhtinskiy, Russian Federation. The Observer Mission (OM) continues to operate 24/7 at both Border Crossing Points (BCPs). The overall number of border crossings by persons slightly decreased at both BCPs...

COPENHAGEN, 18 June 2018 – Welcoming the signing on Sunday of an agreement between Athens and Skopje over a long-running name dispute between the two OSCE countries, OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President George Tsereteli (MP, Georgia) today congratulated the governments for taking a major step forward in resolving the disagreement. He thanked the mediators for their work, congratulated Prime Ministers Alexis Tsipras and Zoran Zaev for their leadership, and expressed hope for next steps to be taken to speedily put this agreement in practice...

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions between the evenings of 15 and 16 June compared with the previous reporting period. Between the evenings of 16 and 17 June, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region compared with the previous 24 hours. The Mission followed up on civilian casualties in Pivdenne and Druzhkivka. It observed fresh damage caused by shelling in residential areas of Pikuzy and Zolote. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations inside the Petrivske disengagement area. The Mission’s access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas. The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near Pankivka. The Mission continued to facilitate the access of Voda Donbassa water company employees to the Donetsk Filtration Station, including through monitoring the security situation around the station. In Kyiv, it monitored the “March of Equality” organized by activists of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex community.

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, compared with the previous 24 hours. Surface-to-air missiles and anti-aircraft gun rounds were fired in the direction of an SMM long-range unmanned aerial vehicle flying over Betmanove. The Mission observed damage caused by shelling and small-arms fire in and near residential areas of Pikuzy, Dokuchaievsk, Holubivske and Holubivka, as well as near Bohdanivka. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations near the Stanytsia Luhanska and Zolote disengagement areas. The Mission’s access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas and was also restricted near Sosnivske. The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line. The Mission continued to facilitate the access of Voda Donbassa water company employees to the Donetsk Filtration Station, including through monitoring the security situation around the station. It monitored and facilitated repairs to the Petrivske pumping station near Artema and to sewage and water pipelines leading to the entry-exit checkpoint in Stanytsia Luhanska.

At 05:06 on 15 June, an SMM long-range unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that was flying over Betmanove (non-government-controlled, formerly Krasnyi Partyzan, 23km north-east of Donetsk) recorded a condensation trail of a missile following a ballistic trajectory at a significantly lower altitude than the UAV from the north-east.