Latest from OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine, based on information received as of 19:30, 18 September 2016

This report is for media and the general public.

The SMM noted an increase in violence recorded in Donetsk region on both 17 and 18 September, including 246 and 322 explosions respectively, compared with 39 explosions recorded on 16 September. In Luhansk region the SMM noted a decrease in ceasefire violations recorded, with four explosions on 17 September and none on 18 September, compared with 15 explosions on 16 September. The SMM analysed impact sites and observed damage to civilian infrastructure in Dokuchaievsk. The Mission noted heavy weapons in violation of withdrawal lines. The SMM monitored the exchange of detained persons across the contact line in Luhansk region and repair works to essential infrastructure. The Mission monitored three border areas currently not under government control. The SMM was denied access three times, on both sides of the contact line. The Mission monitored the situation at crossing points along the administrative boundary line between Kherson and Crimea. In Kyiv, Odessa, Kharkiv and Lviv the SMM monitored the security situation around Russian Federation diplomatic representations on 18 September.  

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations[1] in Donetsk region, including at least 246 explosions on 17 and 322 explosions on 18 September compared with 39 explosions recorded on 16 September. Some 30 per cent of reported explosions were recorded during night time.

During the night hours of 16-17 September, the SMM camera in government-controlled Avdiivka (17km north of Donetsk) recorded two explosions assessed as impacts of rounds from undetermined weapons, 4-5km east-south-east of its location. During the day on 17 September, the camera recorded 15 explosions assessed as caused by impacts of rounds from undetermined weapons, 4-7km east-south-east and south of its location.

During the day on 17 September, the SMM positioned in “DPR”-controlled Yasynuvata (16km north-east of Donetsk) heard 150 undetermined explosions as well as numerous heavy-machine-gun bursts and over a hundred small arms shots 2-6km west-south-west, west-north-west, west, north-west and north of its position. Between 12:55 and 13:35 in particular, the SMM heard an exchange of continuous overlapping fire and uncountable explosions.

Positioned in Avdiivka on the same day, the SMM heard in 15 minutes after noon 30 explosions assessed as impacts of 82mm mortar rounds, 4-5km south-east of its position.

Positioned at Donetsk central railway station (“DPR”-controlled, 6km north-west of Donetsk city centre) on the same day, the SMM heard 36 undetermined explosions at locations 3-7km north-east, north-north-east and north of its position.

In 20 minutes in the late afternoon, positioned near the government-controlled checkpoint in Maiorsk (45km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM heard three explosions assessed as impacts of rocket-propelled-grenade-launcher rounds.

In two hours on the night of 17-18 September, the SMM whilst in “DPR”-controlled Horlivka (39km north-east of Donetsk) the SMM heard 149 undetermined explosions, 23 explosions assessed as outgoing infantry fighting vehicle cannon rounds (three from 73mm and 20 from 30mm cannon), as well as numerous bursts of heavy-machine-gun fire 5-8km to the south-west.

On the same night, within 80 minutes, the SMM camera in Shyrokyne (20km east of Mariupol) recorded three undetermined explosions and one rocket-assisted projectile fired from west to east. The exchange began with 59 bursts of direct tracer fire from east to west, with a total of 66 such bursts recorded. It also included two bursts of direct tracer fire from west to east. On 18 September, the SMM saw during routine maintenance small-arms damage to the pole of the camera.

During the day on 18 September, the SMM camera in Avdiivka recorded 52 undetermined explosions, three explosions assessed as impacts and one air-burst, all 2-7km east-south-east of its location.

In the first half of the same day, the SMM whilst positioned in Yasynuvata, heard ten undetermined explosions and numerous shots of small-arms fire all 3-5km west and north-west of its position. Over the course of one minute at 12:35, the SMM also heard an intense exchange of fire consisting of overlapping single shots of small-arms fire 3-5km north-north-west.

In Luhansk region the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations on 17 September compared with 16 September and none on 18 September. On 17 September positioned in Novooleksandrivka (65km west of Luhansk), the SMM heard two small-arms shots in three minutes, 300-500m south of its position. Around noon, positioned in “LPR”-controlled Izvaryne (53km south-east of Luhansk), the SMM heard three undetermined explosions, 5km north-west of its position within 20 seconds. At 21:22, whilst in government-controlled Shchastia (20km north of Luhansk), the SMM heard one undetermined explosion 8-10km south-south-west.

The SMM followed up on reports of civilian casualties and shelling, and analysed impact sites. On 16 September, the SMM met civilian casualty at a hospital in the “DPR”-controlled Kyivskyi district of Donetsk city where he was being treated. The man said he had sustained shrapnel injuries to his leg, chest, and the SMM saw injuries to his face, according to him due to an explosion 5m away from him on 14 September outside the building of Donetsk airport. The man said he was a journalist for a Donetsk-based TV channel.

On 16 September, accompanied by one Russian Federation Armed Forces officer at the Joint Centre for Control and Co-ordination (JCCC), the SMM analysed fresh impact sites at four residential buildings in “DPR”-controlled Dokuchaievsk (30km south-west of Donetsk). At the first location, the SMM saw that a house had a broken north-west facing window and chipped interior wall in a bedroom. The SMM assessed the damage as caused by a 30mm round fired from a north-westerly direction. The owner said the incident occurred at 23:30 on 15 September while he was sleeping in the same room. At the second location, a first-floor apartment, the SMM saw a broken plastic frame of a north-west facing window (the glass was not broken) and damage to an interior wall of a bedroom. The SMM assessed the damage as caused by two 30mm rounds fired from a north-north-westerly direction. The owner said that the incident occurred at 23:30 on 15 September while she was sleeping in the room with her five-month-old baby. At the third location, a second-floor apartment, the SMM saw a shattered plastic frame of a west-facing balcony and damage to an interior wall it assessed as caused by at least one 30mm round fired from a westerly direction. The owner told the SMM that the incident had occurred at 23:45 on 15 September while she was lying in her bed. At the fourth location, a first-floor apartment, the SMM saw a broken south-west facing window and wooden window frame assessed as caused by a single 30mm round fired from a south-westerly direction. The owner had not been present at the time. No casualties were reported at any of the sites.

The SMM continued to monitor the withdrawal of weapons, in accordance with the Package of Measures and its Addendum, as well as the Minsk Memorandum.

In violation of the respective withdrawal line, the SMM observed 12 multiple-launch rocket systems (MLRS; Uragan BM27, 220mm) on flat train cars at the train station in government-controlled Rubizhne (84km north-west of Luhansk) on 17 September; and four self-propelled howitzers (2S3 Akatsiya, 152mm) in government-controlled Donske (57km south of Donetsk) at a Ukrainian Armed Forces compound on 18 September.

Beyond the withdrawal lines but outside assigned areas at known training grounds in “LPR”-controlled areas the SMM saw on 17 September: eight tanks (type unknown) and six towed howitzers in Shymshynivka (27km south-west of Luhansk); 20 tanks (type unknown) and six self-propelled howitzers (type unknown) in Myrne (28km south-west of Luhansk); and four tanks (type unknown) in Kruhlyk (31km south-west of Luhansk).

The SMM revisited an “LPR” permanent storage site and noted that all weapons previously verified as withdrawn to the site were present.

The SMM observed the presence of armoured combat vehicles and an anti-aircraft gun in the security zone. In government-controlled areas the SMM observed two stationary armoured personnel carriers (APCs; BRDM) each mounted with a heavy-machine gun near Marinka (23km south-west of Donetsk) on 16 September; three infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs; BMP-2) in Stanytsia Luhanska (16km north-east of Luhansk) on 17 September, two such vehicles were also observed on 18 September. In “DPR”-controlled areas the SMM observed one APC (MTLB) inside the premises of the town hospital near Kalmiuske (former Komsomolske, 42km south-east of Donetsk) on 18 September. In “LPR”-controlled areas, the SMM saw one stationary truck with a mounted anti-aircraft gun (ZU-23), pointing west in Donetskyi (50km north-west of Luhansk) on 18 September.

The SMM continued to observe the presence of mine hazard signs and unexploded ordnance (UXO) near populated areas. On 16 September 100m east of Slavne village (government-controlled, 26km south-west of Donetsk) the SMM saw for the first time one sign reading “mines” (in Cyrillic, written in white on a red background). On 18 September, the SMM saw six improvised mine hazard signs (wooden boards with “mines” written in black paint in Ukrainian) in government-controlled Keramik (30km north-west of Donetsk). The signs were installed between the road and the concrete fence of a destroyed compound, approximately 20m from each other. On 17 September, in “LPR”-controlled Krasnyi Lyman (30km north-west of Luhansk), the SMM observed in the yard of an abandoned house, approximately 4m from the entrance, an unexploded under-barrel-grenade-launcher round.

On 17 September, near government-controlled Shchastia bridge (20km north-west of Luhansk), the SMM observed the exchange of two detained persons (men) from “LPR”-controlled area and four detained persons (one of whom was a woman) from government-controlled area in the presence of “LPR” members, Ukraine Armed Forces officers and officials.

The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to enable repairs to essential infrastructure. On both 17 and 18 September the SMM monitored repair works to the water supply system in “DPR”-controlled Shakhta 6-7 (“DPR”-controlled, 40km north-east of Donetsk), at the outskirts of Horlivka.

The SMM followed up on reports of interruption of water supply to Luhansk city and nearby areas. Residents in “LPR”-controlled Obozne, Vesela Hora and Metalist (18, 16 and 6km north of Luhansk, respectively), told the SMM that the water shortage continued. In Luhansk, the situation was also unchanged with certain areas receiving limited supply in the evening only (see SMM Daily Report 17 September 2016).

The SMM monitored three border areas currently not under government control. On 17 September, near the border crossing point in Voznesenivka (formerly Chervonopartyzansk, 65km south-east of Luhansk), the SMM observed a seven-wagon cargo train approaching the crossing point, travelling in the direction of the Russian Federation. The SMM also observed an eight-wagon cargo train stationary 800m from the crossing point. The SMM was not able to see the content of the wagons. At the border crossing point the SMM observed 43 civilian cars (nine with Russian Federation licence plates, one with an “LPR” plate, and 33 with Ukrainian licence plates), and three covered cargo trucks (all with Ukrainian licence plates), all queuing to exit Ukraine. The SMM observed that armed “LPR” members were taking approximately five minutes to process a car and approximately ten minutes for a truck. The SMM also observed three taxis and 28 civilian cars parked in the parking lot of the crossing point. In 15 minutes, the SMM saw four cars with Ukrainian licence plates and one car with Russian Federation licence plates enter Ukraine.

On 17 September, while at Izvaryne border crossing point (52km south-east of Luhansk) for one hour, the SMM observed 70 cars in a queue to cross to the Russian Federation: 45 with Ukrainian licence plates, 15 with Russian Federation licence plates, ten with “LPR” plates, and two buses and one covered lorry (all with Ukrainian licence plates). The SMM also saw 69 cars with Ukrainian and 11 with Russian Federation licence plates in the parking lot, and about 70 pedestrians exiting Ukraine. The SMM observed two covered lorries (with Ukrainian licence plates) and 40 pedestrians entering Ukraine. The SMM talked to three drivers who said the average time to cross into the Russian Federation was over six hours for the regular queue and some 40 minutes for cars with children or disabled people. An armed “LPR” member present at the crossing point stated that passports of people exiting Ukraine had not been stamped at the crossing point since 1 January 2016. A man (30-35 years old) who told the SMM that he was the owner of a car insurance agency in “LPR”-controlled areas explained that car owners who used “LPR” plates on their vehicles had to pay an insurance fee at the crossing point when entering the Russian Federation, and that for vehicles with Ukrainian licence plates the fee was lower.

On 18 September, at the pedestrian crossing point Krasnodarskyi-2 (57km south-east of Luhansk), within an hour, the SMM saw 11 people enter and seven people exit Ukraine. The SMM also saw seven cars (six with Ukrainian licence plates and one with Russian Federation licence plates) parked close to the crossing point. Two of the persons crossing (a couple, approximately 50 years old) told the SMM that they had houses on both sides of the border and cross often, up to three times a day, without any problems, and they rarely had to wait more than 15 minutes to cross. At the nearby Krasnodarskyi (58km south-east of Luhansk) pedestrian border crossing point, in 30 minutes, the SMM saw three people enter Ukraine as well as three vehicles parked in the vicinity (one with Ukrainian and two with Russian Federation licence plates).

The SMM continued to monitor the situation along the administrative boundary line between the mainland and Crimea. On both 17 and 18 September, the SMM noted a calm situation at the crossing points near Kalanchak, Chaplynka and Chonhar (67, 77 and 163km south-east of Kherson respectively) and in adjacent areas, including Chonhar Peninsula. On 18 September the SMM observed two APCs (BRDM-2) mounted with a 20mm cannon each stationary at a military position on the northernmost point of the dam connecting Chonhar peninsula with the mainland.

The SMM monitored the security situation in areas around Russian Federation diplomatic representations. On 17 September, the SMM followed up on media reports of fireworks being fired the previous night in front of the Russian Federation embassy building in Kyiv. At the site, the SMM saw a brown scorch mark on the façade of the building, but no other damage. On 18 September, the SMM monitored areas in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odessa and Lviv. In Kharkiv and Lviv the SMM noted a calm security situation with a small number of National Guard and police officers present at the Russian Federation consulates.

In Kyiv the SMM observed around 100 people (including large media presence) and around 200 national guards and some 70 police officers at the site of the Russian Federation Embassy. At approximately 12:00 around 20 people were protesting in an aggressive manner, one protester got inside the outer temporary fence but was quickly led out by the National Guard. At around 13:00 one person was prevented from entering the building by two aggressive protesters. The SMM saw that the person was forced to the ground, but police officers promptly intervened and escorted him away from the protesters. Shortly after several protesters arrived at the scene carrying banners with anti-Russian slogans written on them, a second person attempting to enter the Embassy was prevented from doing so by the protesters. Police officers intervened to separate people verbally clashing with each other on at least two occasions. The situation was mostly calm in the remainder of the day. The SMM saw at least 70 people enter the building in the course of the day, approximately half of whom were unhindered, while the entry of the rest was facilitated by law enforcement officers.

In Odessa, at approximately 11:30 the SMM saw 10-15 members of the Right Sector arrive in front of the Russian Federation consulate and then some of them started an argument with one person in the front of the building. The tension increased, and as a result of the disturbance four Right Sector members, including the leader of the Odessa branch, were arrested by police. The rest dispersed thereafter. In the afternoon, after those arrested were released, the SMM saw 15-20 activists, including many of the Right Sector activists it saw in the morning, arrive again in front of the consulate and attempt to block the entrance, but ten National Guard officers were standing in their way. At 18:25 the SMM saw the activists throw six eggs at the building, after which another scuffle ensued, law enforcement officers intervened and activists dispersed some 20 minutes later. Throughout the day, the SMM saw some 100 people enter the building, four of whom were obstructed by activists in the afternoon. Around 40 law enforcement officers in total were present at the scene in the course of the day.

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

The SMM’s monitoring is restrained by security hazards and threats, including risks posed by mines and unexploded ordnance, and by restrictions of its freedom of movement 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.

Denial of access:

• On 18 September, armed “DPR” members in the village centre of “DPR”-controlled Kozatske (36 km north-east of Mariupol), aggressively told the SMM to leave the area immediately. The SMM informed the JCCC.
• On 18 September, Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers denied the SMM access to a Ukrainian Armed Forces compound in government-controlled Myrne (40km north-east of Mariupol). The SMM informed the JCCC.
• On 18 September, in “LPR”-controlled Fashchivka (60km south-west of Luhansk), the SMM was approached by a civilian (woman, about 60 years old) who refused to provide identification, but demanded that the SMM has “written permission” to be in the village. At the same time, another individual (man, about 60 years old) was taking pictures of the SMM monitors and vehicles. The man approached the SMM, quickly showed his ID, and stated he was the “Ataman of Stanytsia”. He also added that if the SMM did not leave the area immediately, it would be detained. After 15 minutes when the SMM left the area, both persons followed the SMM in a civilian car for approximately 2km. The SMM informed the JCCC.

Delay:

• On 17 September, Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers delayed the SMM for 45 minutes at a military compound in Respublika (government-controlled, 31km north-west of Mariupol). The JCCC facilitated the SMM’s access.

Conditional access:

• On 17 September, an armed “LPR” member wrote down the SMM monitors’ names and the vehicles’ licence plate numbers at the Izvaryne border crossing point (52km south-east of Luhansk).

 

[1] Please see the annexed table for a complete breakdown of the ceasefire violations as well as map of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions marked with locations featured in this report.