Latest from the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), based on information received as of 19:30, 14 January 2018

This report is for the media and the general public.

The SMM recorded a similar number of ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region between the evenings of 12 and 13 January compared with the previous reporting period. The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region between the evenings of 13 and 14 January compared with the previous 24 hours. The Mission saw damage to civilian properties due to shelling and gunfire in Dokuchaievsk and Avdiivka. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded a ceasefire violation inside the Petrivske disengagement area. The Mission’s access remained restricted in all three areas and elsewhere, including at a non-government-controlled heavy weapons holding area, at two non-government-controlled permanent storage sites and in Staromykhailivka.* The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near Bakhmut. The Mission visited four border areas not under government control.

In Donetsk region, the SMM recorded a similar number of ceasefire violations[1] between the evenings of 12 and 13 January, including a similar number of explosions (about 255), compared with the previous reporting period (about 230 explosions). Between the evenings of 13 and 14 January, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations, including about 65 explosions compared with the previous 24 hours.

In continuation of the sequence of ceasefire violations recorded in the early evening of 12 January (see SMM Daily Report 13 January 2018), on the evening and night of 12-13 January the SMM camera at the Donetsk Filtration Station (15km north of Donetsk) recorded two undetermined explosions, a tracer round in flight from west to east, seven projectiles in flight from west to east, four undetermined explosions and a tracer round from west to east, followed by totals of 33 undetermined explosions and 68 projectiles (60 from east to west and eight from west to east), all 0.5-1.5km south.

On the evening and night of 13-14 January, the same camera recorded, in sequence, an illumination flare in vertical flight, three projectiles in flight from east to west, a projectile from west to east and an undetermined explosion, followed by totals of four projectiles in flight (three from east to west and one from west to east) and an illumination flare in vertical flight, all 0.5-1.5km south. During the day on 14 January, the camera recorded, in sequence, a projectile in flight from east to west, three undetermined explosions, 14 projectiles from west to east, an undetermined explosion and two projectiles from west to east, all 0.5-1.5km south.

During the day on 13 January, positioned on the south-western edge of government-controlled Avdiivka (17km north of Donetsk) for over five hours, the SMM heard 11 undetermined explosions 3-5km east-south-east. During the day on 14 January, positioned at the same location for over five hours, the SMM heard six undetermined explosions 2-4km south-west. During the day on 14 January, the SMM camera in Avdiivka recorded 11 projectiles in flight from north to south and an undetermined explosion, all 4-6km south-east.

During the day on 13 January, positioned on the south-western edge of “DPR”-controlled Yasynuvata (16km north-east of Donetsk) for about one hour, the SMM heard 15 undetermined explosions 2-4km north-north-west. During the day on 14 January, positioned at the railway station in Yasynuvata for about seven hours, the SMM heard five undetermined explosions and small-arms fire 2-3km north-north-west.

During the day on 13 January, positioned in the Trudivski area of “DPR”-controlled Donetsk city’s Petrovskyi district (15km south-west of city centre) for about 45 minutes, the SMM heard 50 bursts of small-arms fire 1-2km north-north-west.

During the day on 14 January, positioned in government-controlled Krasnohorivka (21km west of Donetsk) for about two hours, the SMM heard 19 undetermined explosions 4-6km south-east.

On the evening of 12 January, while in government-controlled Svitlodarsk (57km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM heard 56 explosions assessed as impacts of artillery rounds 8-11km north-east and east, as well as 70 explosions (30 assessed as outgoing infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) (BMP-1) cannon (73mm) rounds, four as outgoing mortar rounds, 24 as impacts of mortar rounds and 12 as impacts of artillery rounds) and at least 320 bursts and shots of small-arms and heavy-machine-gun fire, all 3-8km south-east and south-west. On the evening of 13 January, while at the same location, the SMM heard eight undetermined explosions 5-7km north-east and at least 50 bursts of small-arms and heavy-machine-gun fire 3-4km west. During the day on 14 January, while at the same location, the SMM heard two undetermined explosions 5-7km south-west.

On the evening of 12 January, while in non-government-controlled Debaltseve (58km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM heard 19 undetermined explosions 8-12km north-west.

During the day on 13 January, positioned 1km north-north-west of the entry-exit checkpoint in government-controlled Pyshchevyk (25km north-east of Mariupol), the SMM heard two undetermined explosions and 18 explosions assessed as outgoing rounds 2km north-east (as well as their subsequent impacts at unknown distances east). During the day on 14 January, positioned at the same location, the SMM heard ten undetermined explosions at unknown distances south-east and south.

During the day on 13 January, positioned 3km south-east of government-controlled Lomakyne (15km north-east of Mariupol), the SMM heard 12 explosions (ten assessed as impacts and two as outgoing rounds of rocket-propelled grenade launcher fire), 15 bursts of IFV (BMP-2) cannon (30mm) fire and 20 shots of small-arms fire, all at unknown distances east-north-east and east-south-east. On the same day, positioned about 2.5km south-south-east of Lomakyne, the SMM heard an undetermined explosion at an unknown distance east, as well as an undetermined explosion and six minutes of uncountable overlapping bursts of IFV (BMP-2) cannon and small-arms fire, all 2-4km east-south-east.

In continuation of the sequence of ceasefire violations recorded in the early evening of 12 January (see SMM Daily Report 13 January 2018), on the evening and night of 12-13 January, the SMM camera 1km south-west of Shyrokyne (20km east of Mariupol) recorded 17 projectiles in flight from east to west and an illumination flare in vertical flight, followed by totals of an undetermined explosion and 91 projectiles (53 from east to west, 37 from west to east and one from south to north), all 5-8km north.

On the evening and night of 13-14 January, the same camera recorded, in sequence, three projectiles in flight from east to west, a projectile from west to east and a projectile from east to west, followed by totals of five undetermined explosions, 66 projectiles (60 from east to west and six from west to east) and two flares in vertical flight, all 5-8km north. During the day on 14 January, the camera recorded 17 projectiles in flight from east to west 5-8km north.

In Luhansk region, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations between the evenings of 12 and 13 January, including two explosions, compared with the previous reporting period (no ceasefire violations). Between the evenings of 13 and 14 January, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations, including 11 explosions, compared with the previous 24 hours.

During the day on 13 January, positioned on the eastern edge of “LPR”-controlled Kalynove-Borshchuvate (61km west of Luhansk), the SMM heard an explosion and saw a plume of smoke 7-10km south-west. During the day on 14 January, positioned on the western edge of Kalynove-Borshchuvate, the SMM heard small-arms fire 3-5km south. Later in the day, positioned on the south-western edge of Kalynove-Borshchuvate, the SMM heard an undetermined explosion and about 20 bursts of IFV (BMP-2) cannon fire 3-5km south-east and south, as well as two undetermined explosions 5-7km north-west.

During the day on 14 January, positioned in “LPR”-controlled Luhansk city centre, the SMM heard seven undetermined explosions 10-15km north-east.

The SMM observed fresh damage to civilian properties in residential areas. On 14 January, the SMM saw damage to three properties in “DPR”-controlled Dokuchaievsk (30km south-west of Donetsk). At 82 Robocha Street, the SMM saw a hole in the south-facing exterior wall of a house and a corresponding hole in a chimney on the opposite wall inside the house. The SMM assessed the damage as caused by the same 12.7mm round fired from a south-south-westerly direction. A resident of the house (a woman, aged 65) told the SMM that the damage had occurred while she was at home between 20:20 and 20:30 on 12 January.

At 81 Robocha Street, the SMM saw a hole in the south-west-facing exterior wall of an outhouse and a hole in its opposite interior wall assessed as caused by a round of an undetermined weapon fired from a south-south-westerly direction. A resident of the house (a woman, aged 56) told the SMM that the damage had occurred while she was at home just before 20:30 on 12 January.

At 83 Tsentralna Street, on the south-west-facing side of a five-storey apartment building, the SMM saw shrapnel damage to the doors and windows, tears in a drainpipe, shattered glass on the outer frame of the balcony of apartment no. 61 and broken glass on the pavement in front of the apartment building. The SMM assessed the damage as caused by rounds of undetermined weapons fired from a south-westerly direction. A resident of apartment no. 61 (a woman, aged 55) told the SMM that the damage had occurred while she was at home just before 20:30 on 12 January. The SMM noted that the apartment was located less than 100m from an operational kindergarten.

In Avdiivka, the SMM, accompanied by a Ukrainian Armed Forces officer of the Joint Centre for Control and Co-ordination (JCCC), saw two broken windows and several small holes in the north-west-facing wall of house 4/2 on “Roadside Station 448km” street. On the west-facing side of the house, about 4m to the north-west, the SMM saw a fresh crater in front of a small barn and a dead dog. The SMM assessed all the damage as caused by a mortar (82mm) round fired from a southerly or south-easterly direction. A resident of the house (a man, aged 60-65) told the SMM that he had heard three explosions while he was at home on 13 January at around 15:00 and that his dog had been killed.

The SMM continued to monitor the disengagement process and to pursue full access to the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska (16km north-east of Luhansk), Zolote (60km west of Luhansk) and Petrivske (41km south of Donetsk), as foreseen in the Framework Decision of the Trilateral Contact Group relating to disengagement of forces and hardware of 21 September 2016. The SMM’s access remained restricted but the Mission was able to partially monitor them.*

On the night of 11-12 January, the SMM camera in “DPR”-controlled Petrivske recorded a tracer round in vertical flight 2-3km south-south-west (the Mission was unable to assess whether inside or outside the disengagement area), a tracer round from east to west 2-3km west-south-west (assessed as inside the disengagement area) and a tracer round from west to east 2-3km west (assessed as outside the disengagement area). On the evening of 12 January, the camera recorded 16 tracer rounds in flight from south to north 1-2km west (assessed as outside the disengagement area).

During the day on 13 and 14 January, positioned near the Stanytsia Luhanska and Zolote disengagement areas, the SMM observed calm situations.

The SMM continued to monitor the withdrawal of weapons in implementation of the Package of Measures and its Addendum as well as the Memorandum.

In violation of withdrawal lines, in government-controlled areas, the SMM on 14 January saw six self-propelled howitzers (2S1 Gvozdika, 122mm) on a southbound train near Bakhmut (formerly Artemivsk, 67km north of Donetsk).

Beyond withdrawal lines but outside designated storage sites, in government-controlled areas, the SMM on 14 January saw six towed mortars (2B9 Vasilek, 82mm) on a southbound train near Bakhmut.

The SMM observed weapons that could not be verified as withdrawn, as their storage did not comply with the criteria set out in the 16 October 2015 notification from the SMM to the signatories of the Package of Measures on effective monitoring and verification of the withdrawal of heavy weapons. In areas outside government control beyond the respective withdrawal lines, the SMM saw six self-propelled howitzers (2S1) and noted that 13 mortars (12 PM-38, 120mm and one 2B11 Sani, 120mm) continued to be absent. At a heavy weapons holding area in a non-government-controlled area in Donetsk region, five armed “DPR” members denied the SMM access.*

The SMM revisited two permanent storage sites in non-government-controlled areas of Donetsk region. At one site “DPR” members denied the SMM access on two occasions, while at another, the Mission could not access the site as the gate was locked and no guards were present to open it.*

The SMM observed armoured combat vehicles[2] and other indications of military-type presence in the security zone. In government-controlled areas, the SMM on 12 January saw an IFV (BMP-1) being transported west on a military truck near Buhas (44km south-west of Donetsk).

In non-government-controlled areas, the SMM on 13 January saw a stationary IFV (BMP-1) near Slovianoserbsk (28km north-west of Luhansk). On 14 January, the SMM saw freshly dug trenches on both sides of a road near Zernove (33km south of Donetsk), not previously seen when the SMM was present on 12 January.

The SMM continued to observe the presence of mine hazard signs. On 13 January, in the eastern outskirts of “DPR”-controlled Makiivka (12km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM saw, for the first time, a red mine hazard sign reading “Danger Mines” in Russian and English on a building surrounded by a fence. On 14 January, on road T05-05 in the southern outskirts of Avdiivka, the SMM saw, for the first time, a red mine hazard sign in a field on the west side of the road.

The SMM continued to observe that some mobile telecommunications services were disrupted in non-government-controlled areas (see SMM Daily Report 13 January 2018) of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The SMM noted that services have been disrupted since 11 January in both regions. In Staromykhailivka (15km east of Donetsk), a woman (aged 60-70) expressed concern to the Mission that she could not contact her family in Kharkiv. In Oleksandrivka (20km south-west of Donetsk) two shop keepers (women, aged 50-70) expressed concern to the Mission that the lack of mobile service had prevented them from being able to arrange the delivery of shop supplies such as bread. In Ivanivka (33km east of Luhansk) and in Leskyne (53km south of Luhansk), residents told the SMM that mobile connection was unavailable.

The SMM visited four border areas not under government control. On 13 January, during about one hour at a border crossing point near Uspenka (73km south-east of Donetsk), the SMM saw 30 cars (nine with “DPR” plates), a bus and 17 covered trucks (four with “DPR” plates) in a queue to exit Ukraine and 18 cars (five with “DPR” plates) entering Ukraine.

On 13 January, during 15 minutes at a border crossing point near Ulianivske (61km south-east of Donetsk), the SMM observed no pedestrians exiting or entering Ukraine.

On 13 January, during about half an hour at a border crossing point near Izvaryne (52km south-east of Luhansk), the SMM saw ten cars and 38 pedestrians (26 women and 12 men, aged 20-60) exiting Ukraine and three cars and 25 pedestrians (15 women and ten men, aged 30-50) entering Ukraine.

On 13 January, during 15 minutes at a border crossing point near Verkhnoharasymivka (57km south-east of Luhansk), the SMM saw a woman (aged 40) entering Ukraine and three men (aged 30-40) exiting Ukraine.

The SMM continued monitoring in Kherson, Odessa, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kharkiv and Dnipro, Chernivtsi and Kyiv.

*Restrictions of SMM’s freedom of movement or other impediments to fulfilment of its mandate

The SMM’s monitoring and freedom of movement are restricted by security hazards and threats, including risks posed by mines, unexploded ordnance (UXO) and other impediments – which vary from day to day. The SMM’s mandate provides for safe and secure access throughout Ukraine. All signatories of the Package of Measures have agreed on the need for this safe and secure access, that restriction of the SMM’s freedom of movement constitutes a violation, and on the need for rapid response to these violations. They have also agreed that the JCCC should contribute to such response and co-ordinate mine clearance. Nonetheless, the armed formations in parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions frequently deny the SMM access to areas adjacent to Ukraine’s border outside control of the Government, citing orders to do so. (See, for example, SMM Daily Report 12 January 2018.) The SMM’s operations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions remain restricted following the fatal incident of 23 April 2017 near Pryshyb; these restrictions continued to limit the Mission’s observations.

Denial of access:

• On 13 January, a “DPR” member stating that the SMM must wait for his superior to arrive denied the SMM access to a permanent storage site on two occasions (see above).
• On 13 January, the SMM could not access a permanent storage site in a non-government-controlled area of Donetsk region, as the gate was locked and no guards were present to open it (see above).
• On 13 January, five armed “DPR” members citing orders from their superiors denied the SMM access to a heavy weapons holding area (see above).
• On 14 January, at a “DPR” checkpoint near Staromykhailivka, two unarmed persons in military-style clothing stating that it was unsafe to proceed due to “sniper fire” and “possible shelling and shooting” did not allow the SMM to pass.

Related to disengagement areas and mines/UXO:

• On 13 and 14 January, the SMM was prevented from accessing secondary roads south of the Zolote disengagement area due to the possible presence of mines and UXO. An “LPR” member positioned on the southern side of the Zolote disengagement area told the SMM that no demining had taken place during the previous 24 hours. The SMM did not consider it safe to proceed. 
• On 13 and 14 January, the SMM was prevented from accessing secondary roads in the Zolote disengagement area due to the possible presence of mines and UXO. A Ukrainian Armed Forces officer of the JCCC told the SMM that he had no information regarding de-mining in the area during the previous 24 hours. The SMM did not consider it safe to proceed and informed the JCCC each time.[3]
• On 13 and 14 January, the SMM was prevented from accessing parts of the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, with the exception of the main road, due to the possible presence of mines and UXO. A Ukrainian Armed Forces officer of the JCCC told the SMM that he had no information regarding demining activities over the previous 24 hours. The SMM did not consider it safe to proceed and informed the JCCC each time.4
• On 13 and 14 January, the SMM did not travel across the bridge in government-controlled Shchastia (20km north of Luhansk) due to the presence of mines. A Ukrainian Armed Forces officer of the JCCC said there were mines on the road south of the bridge. The SMM informed the JCCC each time. [3]

[1] Please see the annexed table for a complete breakdown of the ceasefire violations as well as a map of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions marked with locations featured in this report. Two SMM cameras continue to be tested until the end of January 2018.

[2] This hardware is not proscribed by the provisions of the Minsk agreements on the withdrawal of weapons.

[3] The SMM informed Ukrainian Armed Forces officers of the JCCC. Russian Federation Armed Forces officers of the JCCC have withdrawn from the JCCC as of 18 December 2017.