News and press releases

VIENNA, 4 April 2019 – Despite the latest recommitment to cease fire, beginning on 8 March, the security situation in eastern Ukraine remains volatile, the Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine, Ambassador Ertugrul Apakan, said in his address to the OSCE Permanent Council today in Vienna...

KYIV, 4 April 2019 – On the occasion of International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action, observed to raise awareness about mines and progress towards their eradication, the Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine, Ertugrul Apakan, and the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine, Henrik Villadsen, highlighted the importance of mine action in the conflict-affected areas of eastern Ukraine...

Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region. The SMM saw fresh damage to residential buildings in Yasynuvata and Dokuchaievsk. The Mission recorded ceasefire violations and military hardware inside the Zolote disengagement area. The Mission saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line. A civilian car driven by men in military-style attire drove aggressively toward an SMM patrol twice. The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to enable repairs to essential civilian infrastructure. Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued in all three disengagement areas. It was also restricted at a checkpoint near Zaichenko.

Compared with the previous 24 hours, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region. The Mission followed up on reports of a man killed in Sakhanka due to shrapnel injuries, as well as a man and a woman injured in Pikuzy due to shelling, all in March. The SMM saw fresh damage to residential buildings and a school in Zolote-2/Karbonit and Zolote-5/Mykhailivka. It also observed fresh craters near Kalynove-Borshchuvate and Novotroitske. The Mission recorded ceasefire violations inside the Zolote disengagement area and near the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area. The SMM saw for the first time a piece of unexploded ordnance near Novobakhmutivka, unexploded ordnance and anti-tank mines near Marinka, an improvised explosive device near Olenivka and mine hazard signs near Kreminets and Verkhnotoretske. The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to enable repairs to essential civilian infrastructure. Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued in all three disengagement areas. In addition, it was restricted at checkpoints near Zaichenko, Verkhnoshyrokivske and Tavrycheske, as well as at a border crossing point and railway station near Voznesenivka, close to the border with the Russian Federation.

Compared with the previous reporting period, between the evenings of 29 and 30 March, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Compared with the previous 24 hours, between the evenings of 30 and 31 March, the Mission recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and fewer in Luhansk regions. The SMM followed up on reports of an injured man in Verkhnotoretske. It observed fresh damage near and in residential areas in Dokuchaievsk and Hlybokyi. The Mission saw military presence inside the Petrivske disengagement area and recorded ceasefire violations in the Zolote disengagement area. The SMM observed weapons in violation of the withdrawal lines in government-controlled areas of Donetsk region. Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued in all three disengagement areas. In addition, the Mission was denied access at a checkpoint near Zaichenko.* The SMM observed a calm situation in several regions in Ukraine during the Presidential Elections.

KYIV, 1 April 2019 – Sunday’s presidential election in Ukraine was competitive, voters had a broad choice and turned out in large numbers. While the existing legal framework offers a sound basis for holding democratic elections, it was often not implemented in good faith by many stakeholders in the run-up to election day. This negatively impacted trust in the election administration, the enforcement of campaign finance rules, and the effective resolution of election disputes, the international observers concluded in a preliminary statement released today...

Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region. The SMM followed up on reports of a woman and a boy injured due to shelling in Sentianivka. The Mission recorded a ceasefire violation inside the disengagement area near Zolote. It observed weapons in violation of the withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line. The SMM saw anti-tank mines for the first time near Vodiane and Pikuzy. The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to enable repairs to essential civilian infrastructure. Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued in all three disengagement areas. In addition, it was restricted at a checkpoint near Novolaspa and at a heavy weapons holding area in a non-government-controlled area of Donetsk region, as well as near Zaichenko, Izvaryne and Sievernyi close to the border with the Russian Federation.*