OSCE mission limits its Donbas travel for security reasons

15:44, 12.05.2017 1 min read

Members of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) have not fully restored their patrolling routes in Donbas since the April terror attack, OSCE SMM Principal Deputy Chief Monitor Alexander Hug said.

Hug told a press briefing on Friday that the mission had to limit its activity following the tragic incident of April 23, which killed an OSCE SMM monitor and inflicted injuries on two more.

The OSCE SMM will be unable to return to the traditional patrolling routes, which will provide a full picture of the developments on the ground, until the conflicting sides eliminate the threat to observers by demining, marking or fencing off their minefields, he said.

Hug said that the restrictions were self-imposed by the OSCE SMM for security reasons. Only the conflicting sides can ensure their lifting and fulfill their obligation to fence off or mark danger zones, he said.

The mission continues to record a high but stable rate of ceasefire violations, Hug said.

The number of shots fired from weapons prohibited by the Minsk Agreements grew last week, yet gunfire intensity fell in some areas, Hug said.