News and press releases

VIENNA, 1 December 2016 – In their fifth briefing to the OSCE Permanent Council this year, the Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in Ukraine and in the Trilateral Contact Group Martin Sajdik and the Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine Ertugrul Apakan yesterday focused on the need for a real normalization and stabilization in eastern Ukraine, particularly through the implementation of the Minsk agreements.

The SMM recorded a similar number of ceasefire violations as in the previous reporting period in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions, but fewer explosions than during the previous reporting period in each of them. The SMM continued to monitor the disengagement areas in Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske, and faced restrictions of its freedom of movement in all three areas.

On 30th November 2016, the 72nd meeting under the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) took place in Ergneti, co-facilitated by Kęstutis Jankauskas, the Head of the European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM) and Ambassador Guenther Baechler, the Special Repre¬sentative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus...

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region during the reporting period and fewer in Luhansk region, compared with the previous reporting period. The SMM recorded the majority of the ceasefire violations around the Avdiivka-Yasynuvata-Donetsk airport area. The SMM continued to monitor the disengagement areas in Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske, and faced restrictions of its freedom of movement in all three areas.* The SMM camera at the Stanytsia Luhanska bridge recorded at least two ceasefire violations within the disengagement area. The Mission followed up on reports of an accidental civilian casualty in Dokuchaievsk and three non-civilian casualties in Novozvanivka. It continued to monitor the withdrawal of weapons and noted weapons in violation of the withdrawal lines in government-controlled areas. The SMM monitored repairs to essential infrastructure providing water to 50,000 people in and around Toretsk...

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 increased at both BCPs...

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region compared with the evening of 27 and 28 November. In Luhansk region the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations compared with the evening of 27 and 28 November, with the majority having been recorded in areas along the contact line in the western part of the region. The SMM continued to monitor the disengagement areas in Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske, and faced restrictions of its freedom of movement in all three areas.*

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations between the evenings of 25 and 26 November and fewer ceasefire violations between the evenings of 26 and 27 November, compared with the previous reporting period. The SMM recorded the majority of ceasefire violations in the area north-east of Mariupol and around the Avdiivka-Yasynuvata-Donetsk airport area. In Luhansk region the SMM observed ceasefire violations between the evenings of 25 and 26 November and the evenings of 26 and 27 November; it had observed none in the previous reporting period. All of the ceasefire violations were recorded in the western part of Luhansk region. The SMM continued to monitor the disengagement areas in Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske, and faced restrictions of its freedom of movement in all three areas.* It lost contact with a mini unmanned aerial vehicle north-east of Mariupol.* The Mission monitored three border areas not controlled by the Government. The SMM observed a public gathering near the Cabinet of Ministers in Kyiv...