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

This report is for the media and the general public.

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region, compared with the previous reporting period. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations inside the Petrivske and near the Zolote disengagement areas. Its access remained restricted there and elsewhere, including in Donske and Izvaryne.* The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line. The Mission continued to facilitate access to the Donetsk Filtration Station for Voda Donbassa water company employees in order to keep the station operational; it heard ceasefire violations in the area despite security guarantees. The SMM continued to facilitate and monitor repairs to high-voltage power lines near Almazna and to the Petrivske pumping station near Artema. In Berehove, the Mission followed up further on reports of damage to nine cars with Hungarian licence plates. In Kyiv, the SMM monitored two marches: one on the occasion of Mother’s Day and the second one on affordable housing programmes for internally displaced persons and ATO veterans.

In Donetsk region, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations[1], including about 210 explosions, compared with the previous reporting period (about 360 explosions).

On the evening of 13 May, the SMM camera at the Donetsk Filtration Station (DFS) (15km north of Donetsk) recorded three projectiles in flight from south to north 1-3km west. Despite security guarantees given, on 14 May, positioned at the DFS for about three and a half hours, the SMM heard an undetermined explosion and ten shots and bursts of small-arms fire, all 1km north-north-west. On the same day, positioned 1.1km north-west of the railway station in Yasynuvata (non-government-controlled, 16km north-east of Donetsk) for about six hours, the SMM heard an undetermined explosion and about 30 shots of small-arms fire, all 1-5km west and north. Positioned on the south-western edge of Avdiivka (government-controlled, 17km north of Donetsk) for about six hours, the SMM heard four undetermined explosions 3-5km south-east.

On the evening of 13 May, while in Svitlodarsk (government-controlled, 57km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM heard about 40 undetermined explosions and about 140 bursts and shots of small-arms and heavy-machine-gun fire, all 2-13km east, south-east, south, south-west and west. At the same location on 14 May, the SMM heard about 85 undetermined explosions and about 100 bursts and shots of heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire, all 2-7km east, south-east and south.

On the evening and night of 13-14 May, while in Horlivka (non-government-controlled, 39km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM heard six undetermined explosions and nine bursts of heavy-machine-gun fire, all 3-5km south-east. At the same location on the morning of 14 May, the SMM heard two undetermined explosions 5-7km south-west.

On the morning of 14 May, positioned in Myronivskyi (government-controlled, 62km north-east of Donetsk) for about 30 minutes, the SMM heard 11 undetermined explosions 3-5km south-east.

On 14 May, positioned 1km north-north-west of Pyshchevyk (government-controlled, 25km north-east of Mariupol), the SMM saw 11 undetermined explosions 2-4km south-south-east. The SMM also heard 25 undetermined explosions and ten bursts of heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire at undetermined distances east, south-east, south-south-east.

In Luhansk region, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations, including, however, fewer explosions (13), compared with the previous reporting period (about 30 explosions).

The SMM continued to monitor the disengagement process and to pursue full access to the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska (government-controlled, 16km north-east of Luhansk), Zolote (government-controlled, 60km west of Luhansk) and Petrivske (non-government-controlled, 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.*

In the early hours of 5 May[2], the SMM camera in Petrivske recorded six undetermined explosions (four assessed as inside and two assessed as outside the disengagement area) and four airbursts of an undetermined weapon (assessed as inside the disengagement area), all 1-1.5km at directions ranging from south-south-east to south-west.

During the night of 13-14 May, the SMM camera in Zolote recorded a projectile in flight from north-west to south-east, 5-7km east-south-east (assessed as outside the disengagement area), and two projectiles in flight from east-north-east to west-south-west and an illumination flare, all 3.5-12km south and south-south-east (assessed as outside the disengagement area).

On 14 May, positioned near the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, the SMM observed a calm situation.

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

In violation of withdrawal lines in a government-controlled area, the SMM saw a self-propelled howitzer (2S3 Akatsiya, 152mm) near Vidrodzhennia (66km north-east of Donetsk).

In a non-government-controlled area, on 13 May an SMM mini-unmanned-aerial vehicle (UAV) spotted four tanks (T-64) near Novohryhorivka (33km west of Luhansk).

Beyond the respective withdrawal lines but outside designated storage sites in non-government-controlled areas, the SMM saw three tanks (one T-62, two undetermined) stationary near Myrne (28km south-west of Luhansk). On 10 May, aerial imagery revealed the presence of 11 tanks (type undetermined) near Shymshynivka (27km south-west of Luhansk) (see SMM Daily Report 25 April 2018).

The SMM observed armoured combat vehicles and an anti-aircraft gun[3] in the security zone. In government-controlled areas, on 12 May, an SMM mid-range UAV spotted an infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) (BMP-2) in residential areas in Krymske (42km north-west of Luhansk). On the same day, an SMM mini-UAV spotted nine segments of a pontoon bridge (PMP-3) near Orikhove-Donetske (44km north-west of Luhansk) as well as an armoured personnel carrier (APC) (MT-LB) and an armoured reconnaissance vehicle (BRDM-2) near Vodiane (15km north-west of Donetsk). On 13 May, an SMM mini-UAV spotted four IFVs (two BMP-1 and two BMP-2) and an APC (BTR-variant) on the northern edge of Muratove (51km north-west of Luhansk). On 14 May, the SMM saw eight APCs (BTR-80) near Krasnohorivka (24km north of Donetsk) and three armed combat vehicles (BTR-4) near Pravdivka (38km north of Donetsk).

In non-government-controlled areas, on 13 May, an SMM mini-UAV saw an IFV (BMP-2) and an APC (MT-LB) with an anti-aircraft gun (ZU-23, 23mm) mounted atop 300m east of Dovhe (22km north-west of Luhansk) and four IFVs (BMP-1) and two APCs (MT-LB) 3km south west of Zhovte (17km north-west of Luhansk). On 11 May, aerial imagery revealed the presence of three military-type armoured vehicles and 57 military-type trucks near Kalmiuske (formerly Komsomolske, 42km south-east of Donetsk) in a zone within which deployment of heavy armaments and military equipment is proscribed according to Point 5 of the Memorandum of 19 September 2014 (see SMM Daily Report 25 April 2018).

The SMM continued to observe the presence of mines. On 12 May, an SMM mid-range UAV spotted for the first time at least 150 anti-tank mines laid in three rows near Naberezhne (non-government-controlled, 77km south of Donetsk).

The SMM continued to facilitate the access of Voda Donbassa water company employees to the DFS in order to keep the station operational and monitored the security situation and demining activities around the DFS. On 13 and 14 May, positioned at the DFS and in the nearby areas of Avdiivka and Yasynuvata, the SMM heard undetermined explosions, as well as heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire (see ceasefire violations section above and ceasefire violations table below), despite security guarantees.

The SMM continued to facilitate and monitor repair works to high-voltage power lines near Almazna (non-government-controlled, 55km west of Luhansk) and the Petrivske pumping station near Artema (government-controlled, 26km north of Luhansk).

The SMM followed up on reports on the closure of the entry-exit checkpoint in Marinka (government-controlled, 23km south-west of Donetsk). On 11 May, the SMM saw that there were no cars or people in the checkpoint and that about 60 cars, eight buses and 300 pedestrians were waiting west of the checkpoint. A Ukrainian Armed Forces soldier told the SMM that the checkpoint had been temporarily closed but did not provide further details.

The SMM visited border areas not under government control. While at a border crossing point near Uspenka (73km south-east of Donetsk) for about one hour, the SMM saw 36 cars (eight Ukrainian, 16 Russian Federation and one with Georgian licence plates, and 11 “DPR” plates), five covered cargo trucks with “DPR” plates, a bus with Ukrainian licence plates and 55 passengers aboard and a minibus with Russian Federation licence plates and ten passengers aboard exiting Ukraine. During the same period, the SMM saw 27 cars (ten Ukrainian and seven Russian Federation licence plates, and ten “DPR” plates), two covered cargo trucks with Ukrainian licence plates and five buses (four Ukrainian licence plates and one with “DPR” plates) entering Ukraine.

While at a border crossing point near Ulianivske (61km southeast of Donetsk) for about 20 minutes, the SMM saw no traffic or pedestrians entering or exiting Ukraine. While at a border crossing point near Izvaryne (52km south-east of Luhansk) for about ten minutes, the SMM saw two buses with Ukrainian licence plates enter Ukraine.* While at a pedestrian border crossing point near Verkhnoharasymivka (57km south-east of Luhansk) for about 30 minutes, the SMM saw three pedestrians (women, in their fifties) exit Ukraine and two pedestrians (men, in their fifties) enter Ukraine.

In Berehove (172km south-west of Ivano-Frankivsk), the SMM continued to follow up on damage to nine cars with Hungarian licence plates at 39a Shevchenko Boulevard (see SMM Daily Report 18 March 2018). On 14 May, the SMM spoke to the press officer of the regional police who stated that two suspects (men, 29 and 34 years old) had been arrested and interrogated in relation to the case.

In Kyiv, the SMM observed two marches. One was held on 12 May to raise awareness about affordable housing programmes for internally displaced persons and ATO veterans and was organized by a non-governmental organization. The SMM saw 120 persons (mostly women of different ages) marching from Shevchenko Park to the Cabinet of Ministers building at 12/2 Mykhaila Hrushevskoho street some of whom were carrying Ukrainian flags and posters critical of the government’s housing policy. The SMM observed two police cars and around 40 law enforcement officers present. It saw that the march ended without incident.

The other march was held on the occasion of Mother’s Day. The SMM saw about 530 people (about 500 women and 30 men of all ages) marching from Mykhailivska Square to Kyiv City Hall at 36 Khreshchatyk street. Some of them were wearing yellow flowers and holding photographs of young men they said were their sons or relatives who had lost their lives in the conflict. The SMM saw a police car and 24 honour guards in uniforms. Throughout the event, it observed a calm situation.

The SMM continued monitoring in Kherson, Odessa, Lviv, Kharkiv, Dnipro and Chernivtsi.

*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 Joint Centre for Control and Co‑ordination (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 (see below). 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:

• At a border crossing point near Izvaryne, a member of the armed formations told the SMM to leave the area, saying that the restrictions on the SMM’s presence were still in place.
• The SMM was twice denied access to a compound in Donske (57km south of Donetsk) by Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers who told the SMM it could not access the facility without being escorted by a Ukrainian Armed Forces brigade representative.

Related to disengagement areas and mines/UXO:

• 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 no demining had taken place during the previous 24 hours. The SMM did not consider it safe to proceed and informed the JCCC.[4]
• 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 by phone that no demining had taken place during the previous 24 hours. The SMM did not consider it safe to proceed and informed the JCCC.
• The SMM was prevented from accessing secondary roads south of the Zolote disengagement area due to the possible presence of mines and UXO. An armed formation 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.

Other impediments

• In Petrovo-Krasnosillia (formerly Petrovske, non-government-controlled, 44km south-west of Luhansk), a member of the local population told the SMM she could not provide any information without the SMM obtaining written permission from senior members of the armed formations.

[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. The SMM cameras at the entry-exit checkpoints in Marinka and Pyshchevyk were not operational during the reporting period.

[2] Due to the presence of mines, including those on a road between Bohdanivka (government-controlled, 41km south-west of Donetsk) and Petrivske, the SMM’s access to its camera in Petrivske remained limited (see, for example, SMM Daily Report 3 May 2018).

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

[4] 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.