News and press releases

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region compared with the previous reporting period. The SMM continued monitoring all three disengagement areas; it recorded a projectile in flight, assessed as inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in all three areas and elsewhere, including at a checkpoint near Olenivka.* The SMM saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near Illinka. The Mission facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance to the thermal power plant in Shchastia and high-voltage power lines near Donetskyi. In Kyiv, the SMM followed up on reports of an explosion which killed two people and injured three others and on reports of a fire in a building. Also in Kyiv, it monitored the ongoing gathering in front of the national Parliament building.

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region compared with the previous reporting period. The SMM continued monitoring all three disengagement areas and recorded ceasefire violations near the Zolote and Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement areas. Its access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas and elsewhere, including near Verkhnoshyrokivske. In Verkhnoshyrokivske, men in military-style clothing pointed a heavy machine-gun at an SMM patrol stopped at a checkpoint. The SMM saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near Miusynsk and Luhansk city. The Mission facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance to the thermal power plant in Shchastia, water pipelines near Maiorsk and in Horlivka, and the gas distribution station in Dovhe. In Kyiv, the SMM monitored the ongoing gathering in front of the national Parliament building.

An SMM patrol comprising two armoured vehicles and six members were stopped by armed men at a checkpoint near “DPR”-controlled Verkhnoshyrokivske (formerly Oktiabr, 29km north-east of Mariupol) at 09:57.

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations both in Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. The Mission followed up on reports of a man in Donetsk city injured by the explosion of an explosive device while handling it. The SMM continued monitoring all three disengagement areas and recorded ceasefire violations near the Zolote disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas and elsewhere, including near Khrustalnyi. The SMM saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines in Kostiantynivka and Tsukuryne. The Mission facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance to the thermal power plant in Shchastia, a water pumping station near Artema and a water pipeline between Olenivka and Dokuchaievsk. In Kyiv, the SMM monitored the security situation at a court and an ongoing gathering in front of the national Parliament building.

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. The SMM continued monitoring all three disengagement areas. The Mission observed that three civilians were let through the government checkpoint north of the Zolote disengagement area but were denied passage to areas not under government control. The SMM’s access remained restricted in all three areas and elsewhere, including again in Samiilove, a settlement close to the border with the Russian Federation, and in Boikivske.* The Mission observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line. It facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance to essential infrastructure in Shchastia and near Artema. The SMM visited three border areas not under government control. The Mission continued to monitor an ongoing gathering in Kyiv where it observed reduced numbers of participants.

KYIV, 20 October 2017 – The safety of journalists and putting an end to impunity for crimes committed against them must be adequately addressed to maintain a favourable environment for freedom of the media in Ukraine, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Harlem Désir said today, during his visit to Kyiv.

OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) Lamberto Zannier, on 9 October 2017, said he is actively engaged with the government of Ukraine on how best to accommodate the ethnic and linguistic diversity of society. The High Commissioner is paying particular attention to inter-ethnic