Spot Report 34/2020: Members of the armed formations continued to deny SMM patrols passage at checkpoints in Donetsk and Luhansk regions

From 20 to 26 June, members of the armed formations again denied the SMM attempts to cross into non-government-controlled areas along official crossing routes: six times in Donetsk region and twice in Luhansk region, while further attempts to cross into government-controlled areas were also denied four times in Luhansk region.

On 20, 22, 23, 24, 25 and 26 June, at a checkpoint south of the Stanytsia Luhanska bridge (15km north-east of Luhansk), members of the armed formations continued to deny the SMM passage towards non-government-controlled areas on two occasions, and passage towards government-controlled areas on four other occasions – three times referring to the closure of the checkpoint due to COVID-19 and three times, stating that “the SMM did not have permission to pass”.

On 23 June, at a checkpoint near Olenivka (non-government-controlled, 23km south-west of Donetsk), members of the armed formations continued to deny the SMM passage towards non-government-controlled areas, referring to a “lack of permission from their superiors”.

On 22 and on 26 June, at a checkpoint west of Verkhnoshyrokivske (formerly Oktiabr, non-government-controlled, 85km south of Donetsk), members of the armed formations (some visibly armed) denied the SMM passage towards non-government-controlled areas, both times referring to quarantine restrictions due to COVID-19.

On 21, 23 and 26 June, at a checkpoint near Horlivka (non-government-controlled, 39km north-east of Donetsk), the Mission was again unable to travel towards non-government-controlled areas due to the presence of a metal barrier and spikes laid across the road, and of a mine hazard sign. In addition, on 26 June, members of the armed formations denied the SMM passage towards non-government-controlled areas referring to a “lack of permission from their superiors”.

The Mission began facing repeated denials when attempting to cross into non-government-controlled areas at checkpoints of the armed formations in Donetsk region on 21 March and Luhansk region on 23 March (see previous SMM Spot Reports). They restrict the SMM’s freedom of movement across the contact line, thus impeding the implementation of its mandate throughout the country.

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With regard to COVID-19, the SMM has introduced a number of stringent mitigation measures into its operational procedures. These include strict adherence to social distancing rules both internally and with external interlocutors, daily temperature checks, use of PPE and minimizing the number of personnel in vehicles.