The withdrawal of weapons smaller than 100mm in caliber from the contact line in the Luhansk region of Ukraine has drastically accelerated restorations, the Ukrainian mission to the Joint Center for Control and Coordination (JCCC) has said.

"The pullback of certain types of hardware and armaments from the contact line in the Luhansk region and the assistance provided by the OSCE SMM have accelerated [restoration] works in that area practically six-fold. We used to have three reconstruction sites, and we have 18 now," a report posted on the Ukrainian Defense Ministry website on Monday quoted supervisor of the JCCC restorations control and coordination group Yevhen Korzh as saying.

The Khartsyzk-Zorya power line that feeds Mariupol has been fully restored, the officer said. Backup water mains of Mayorsk pumping stations have been repaired with the consent of both sides. Ukrainian sappers have helped clear of mines and prepare reconstruction of a track maintenance station on the Kurdiumivka-Mykytivka line.

According to Korzh, the militants have been creating impediments. For instance, two days – Tuesdays and Thursdays – have been assigned for processing reconstruction requests from enterprises along the contact line, while Ukraine processes such requests within no more than eight hours.

"Besides, the militants frequently sabotage such requests," the report said.