OSCE Chairperson-in-Office addresses Ministerial Council event on crisis in and around Ukraine, praises work of SMM and Trilateral Contact Group

HAMBURG, Germany, 8 December 2016 – On the first day of the 23rd OSCE Ministerial Council, the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier addressed delegations at a side event on the crisis in and around Ukraine. The minister was briefed by his Special Representative in Ukraine and to the Trilateral Contact Group, Martin Sajdik, and the Chief Monitor of the Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), Ertuğrul Apakan, on the state of play.

The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office commended the indispensable contribution of the OSCE to the efforts to peacefully resolve the crisis, but stressed that it was the responsibility of the sides to move forward with the implementation of the Minsk agreements.

"We owe gratitude to the SMM and the Trilateral Contact Group for all their hard work and perseverance. But the OSCE cannot resolve this conflict on its own. We urgently need to stop the recent deterioration of the security situation, above all for the sake of the civilian population, who are facing the third winter of the conflict!"

The Chairperson’s Special Representative Sajdik briefed on the efforts of the Trilateral Contact Group to improve the situation of the population in the areas affected by the conflict. Urging progress with the release of detainees and unimpeded access for humanitarian aid, Sajdik concluded that "where there is political will, there is also a way to make a difference."

SMM Chief Monitor Apakan stressed that the overriding priority was unconditional adherence to the ceasefire and a new commitment to the withdrawal of weapons: "Human suffering continues and is made worse by every upsurge in fighting". Calling for respect for the safety of SMM monitors, he underlined that the mission would continue to do its utmost to help reduce tensions.