17:37 06.08.2015

Open dialog needed to withdraw arms in Donbas - OSCE

2 min read
Open dialog needed to withdraw arms in Donbas - OSCE

An agreement to withdraw arms smaller than 100 mm caliber from the resistance line has not been reached during another round of Minsk talks on settling the situation in eastern Ukraine and the parties are urged to hold an open dialog, Deputy Head of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) Alexander Hug said at a briefing in Kyiv on Thursday.

According to the OSCE SMM deputy head, OSCE SMM Head, Ambassador Ertugrul Apakan and Hug returned on August 5 from the seventh round of talks of the working group on security in Minsk. The plan to withdraw tanks and arms smaller than 100 mm in caliber was discussed but, unfortunately, the parties did not reach an agreement, Hug said. The OSCE SMM urges the parties to start an open dialog, he said.

At the same time, SMM monitors continue to register violations of the Minsk agreements, Hug said. The situation around Donetsk airport remains the most tense, in the past week about 500 explosions and shots were registered there and increased battles were registered near Horlivka, he said.

The situation at Shyrokyne east from Mariupol remains calm, Hug said. The mission assisted the arrival of demining experts so that local residents can return there and OSCE SMM monitors can work calmly, he said.

As of today, the mission includes 819 people and 513 of them are monitors, Hug said.

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