Latest from the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), based on information received as of 19:30, 7 August 2018

This report is for the media and the general public.

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region, compared with the previous reporting period. The Mission’s access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas; it was also restricted at a checkpoint near Khreshchatytske.* The Mission continued to facilitate the operation of the Donetsk Filtration Station, including through monitoring the security situation around the station, as well as repairs and maintenance works to critical civilian infrastructure near Artema, Stanytsia Luhanska, Novotoshkivske and Popasna. In Kherson, the SMM monitored the court hearing of the former RIA Novosti Ukraine editor-in-chief.

In Donetsk region, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations[1], including about 140 explosions, compared with the previous reporting period (about 90 explosions).

On the evening of 6 August, while in Svitlodarsk (government-controlled, 57km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM heard three undetermined explosions and about 44 bursts of heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire, all 3-8km south and south-east. During the day on 7 August, it heard about 85 undetermined explosions and about 70 bursts of heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire, all 5-7km south-east and south-west.

On the evening and night of 6-7 August, the SMM camera at the Donetsk Filtration Station (DFS) (15km north of Donetsk) recorded an explosion assessed as an impact of a mortar round 100-500m east, as well as 15 undetermined explosions, 60 projectiles in flight (mostly from west to east and north-west to south-east), two bursts of undetermined weapons and an illumination flare, all 0.5-3km east, south-east and south-west.[2]

The SMM camera at the entry-exit checkpoint in Maiorsk (government-controlled, 45km north-east of Donetsk) recorded 13 undetermined explosions, 73 projectiles in flight (mostly from north to south) and four illumination flares in vertical flight, all 2-6km north-east and east.

The SMM camera at the entry-exit checkpoint in Marinka (government-controlled, 23km south-west of Donetsk) recorded three undetermined explosions, 30 projectiles in flight (mostly from west to east), two bursts of undetermined weapons, two illumination flares in flight from west to east and a muzzle flash, all 1-4km north-east.

The SMM camera at the entry-exit checkpoint in Pyshchevyk (government-controlled, 25km north-east of Mariupol) recorded an undetermined explosion and 74 projectiles in flight (mostly from west to east), all 1-5km south-east and south.

The SMM camera 1km south-west of Pyshchevyk recorded four undetermined explosions, about 100 projectiles in flight (mostly from north-north-west to south-south-east) and three illumination flares in vertical flight, all 1-5km at directions ranging from north-east to south-east.

In Luhansk region, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations, however, more explosions (eight), compared with the previous reporting period (no explosions).

During the day on 7 August, positioned in Holubivka (formerly Kirovsk, non-government-controlled, 51km west of Luhansk), the SMM heard eight undetermined explosions 8-10km north.

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)[3], 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 6 August, inside the Zolote disengagement area, the SMM saw a Ukrainian Armed Forces soldier carrying an assault rifle (AK-47) in Katerynivka (government-controlled, 64km west of Luhansk) and walking north-east towards Zolote-4/Rodina (59km west of Luhansk). On 7 August, on two occasions in the same area, the SMM saw a Ukrainian Armed Forces soldier carrying an assault rifle (AK-47) and walking north-east towards Zolote-4/Rodina.

Positioned near the Stanytsia Luhanska and Petrivske disengagement areas, 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.

Beyond withdrawal lines but outside designated storage sites in non-government-controlled areas, on 6 August, a long-range SMM unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) spotted 14 tanks (T-72) near Ternove (57km east of Donetsk) and ten tanks (T-72) near Pokrovka (36km east of Donetsk). On 5 August, aerial imagery available to the SMM revealed the presence of 21 tanks (type undetermined) near Ternove.

The SMM observed armoured combat vehicles, anti-aircraft guns[4] and other military-type presence in the security zone. In government-controlled areas, the SMM saw an infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) (BTR-4) near Novobakhmutivka (28km north of Donetsk) and an IFV (BMP-1) in Vrubivka (72km west of Luhansk).

In non-government-controlled areas, on 6 August, a long-range SMM UAV spotted a surveillance and acquisition radar (P-19) near Rozivka (37km north-east of Donetsk), as well as an armoured personnel carrier (APC) (BTR-80) and an armoured reconnaissance vehicle (BDRM-2) near Kalmiuske (formerly Komsomolske, 42km south-east of Donetsk). On 7 August, the SMM saw three APCs (MT-LB) (two of which with an anti-aircraft gun (ZU-23, 23mm) mounted on top) near Pervomaisk (58km west of Luhansk).

The SMM continued to facilitate the operation of the DFS, including through monitoring adherence to the ceasefire. Positioned in areas near the DFS, the SMM heard ceasefire violations, despite explicit security guarantees (see table below).

The SMM also continued to facilitate and monitor repair works to a water pumping station near Artema, to water distribution infrastructure in Stanytsia Luhanska and near Novotoshkivske (government-controlled 53km west of Luhansk), and to a railway station in Popasna (government-controlled, 69km west of Luhansk). 

In Kherson, the SMM monitored an appellate hearing on the extension of pretrial detention of the former editor-in-chief of RIA Novosti Ukraine, arrested in Kyiv on 15 May on charges of high treason under Art. 111.1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (see SMM Daily Report 18 May 2018 and SMM Daily Report 13 July 2018). The court ruled that the defendant would remain in custody until the next hearing scheduled for 8 September 2018. Inside the courtroom, the Mission saw four National Guard officers.

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

*Restrictions of the 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 Coordination (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 (for example, see SMM Daily Report of 7 August 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

Denials of access:

• At a checkpoint near Khreshchatytske (nongovernment-controlled, formerly Krasnoarmiiske, 86km south of Donetsk), three armed members of the armed formations denied the SMM passage, saying that “special operations” were underway in the area. The SMM noted cars passing through the checkpoint.

Regular restrictions 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 by telephone that no demining had taken place during the previous 24 hours. The SMM did not consider it safe to proceed and informed the JCCC.[5]
• 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 telephone 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. A member of the armed formations 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.
• The SMM did not travel north towards the bridge near governmentcontrolled Shchastia (20km north of Luhansk) due to the possible presence of mines. A member of the armed formations said that no demining had taken place during the previous 24 hours.

Conditional access:

• At a checkpoint near Horlivka (nongovernment-controlled, 39km north-east of Donetsk), members of the armed formations allowed the SMM to proceed only after checking the interior of its vehicles.

[1] For a complete breakdown of the ceasefire violations, please see the annexed table.

[2] Further review of imagery from SMM cameras at the DFS indicated that the projectiles, initially assessed in the SMM Daily Report of 6 August 2018 as multiple launch rocket system rounds, were fired from undetermined weapons.

[3] Due to presence of mines, including those on a road between Bohdanivka and Petrivske, the SMM’s access to its camera in Petrivske remained limited; thus, the review of the camera footage may take place days later.

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

[5]     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.