Latest from the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), based on information received as of 19:30, 1 October 2018

This report is for the media and the general public.

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, compared with the previous 24 hours. Small-arms fire was directed at an SMM unmanned aerial vehicle near Zhovte. The Mission followed up on reports of a girl injured by shelling in Staromykhailivka and children killed and injured by an explosion in Horlivka. The SMM recorded a ceasefire violation near the Zolote disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas as well as near Zaichenko, Tavrycheske, Bezimenne, Sosnivske, and Novoazovsk near the border with the Russian Federation.* The SMM observed weapons in violation of agreed withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line. The Mission continued to facilitate the operation of the Donetsk Filtration Station. It also facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to enable repairs and maintenance to the phenol sludge reservoir near Zalizne, to the Krasnohorivka gas distribution station and to high-voltage powerlines near Zhovte. In Kyiv region, the SMM observed an incident during a court hearing for a journalist and followed up on reports of damage to the offices of the Russian Federation Trade Representation and of a member of parliament.

In Donetsk region, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations,[1] including 205 explosions, compared with the previous 24 hours (about 100 explosions).

On the evening and night of 30 September-1 October, the SMM camera at the Donetsk Filtration Station (DFS) (15km north of Donetsk) recorded an undetermined explosion, about 60 projectiles (mostly in vertical flight) and an illumination flare in flight from east to west, all 1-4km south-south-west.

On the evening and night of 30 September-1 October, the SMM camera 1.5km north-east of Hnutove (government-controlled, 20km north-east of Mariupol) recorded 22 undetermined explosions, about 330 projectiles in flight (mostly from north to south and from south to north) and a muzzle flash, all 2-4km at easterly directions.

On the evening of 30 September, while in Svitlodarsk (government-controlled, 57km north-east of Donetsk), the SMM heard about 50 undetermined explosions and about 160 bursts and shots of heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire, all 3-8km south-east, south-south-east and south.

In Luhansk region, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations, including, however, fewer explosions (six), compared with the previous 24 hours (about 30 explosions).

On the evening 30 September, the SMM camera in Kriakivka (government-controlled, 38km north-west of Luhansk) recorded two explosions assessed as impacts 3-5km south-south-west, as well as two undetermined explosions, about 130 projectiles in flight (mostly from east-north-east to west-south-west and from east-south-east to west-north-west) and an illumination flare in flight from west-north-west to east-south-east, all 1-5km south-south-west and south-west.

The same evening, while in Kadiivka (formerly Stakhanov, non-government-controlled, 50km west of Luhansk), the SMM heard about 120 undetermined explosions and about 200 bursts of heavy-machine-gun fire, all 10-15km north-west and north-north-west.

The SMM followed up on reports of a girl injured by shelling in Staromykhailivka (non-government-controlled, 15km west of Donetsk). On 1 October, medical staff at the Kalinina Hospital in Donetsk city told the SMM that a 16-year-old girl had been admitted the previous day with a wound caused by shelling and had been transferred the same day to the city’s Children’s Clinical Centre. Medical staff added that the girl was not in serious condition. Medical staff at the clinical centre told the SMM that the girl had been admitted on 30 September after having been injured by shelling. According to the girl’s mother, with whom the SMM spoke over the telephone, her daughter told her that at around 16:30 on 30 September, she had heard a whistling sound near their home on Leninabadska Street in Staromykhailivka and then seen her abdomen bleeding.

The SMM continued to follow up on reports of children killed and injured by an explosion in Horlivka (non-government-controlled, 39km north-east of Donetsk). (See SMM Daily Report 1 October 2018.) On 1 October, medical staff at a morgue in Horlivka told the SMM that the bodies of three boys (12, 13 and 14 years old) had been brought to the morgue on 30 September. They added that the boys had died from shrapnel and blast-wave injuries and organ damage.

The SMM continued to monitor and to pursue full access to the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska (government-controlled, 16km north-east of Luhansk), Zolote (government-controlled, 60km west of Luhansk) and Petrivske (non-government-controlled, 41km south of Donetsk), as foreseen in the Framework Decision of the Trilateral Contact Group relating to disengagement of forces and hardware of 21 September 2016. The SMM’s access remained restricted, but the Mission was able to partially monitor them.*

On 29 September, an SMM long-range unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) spotted a military truck, assessed as belonging to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, inside the Petrivske disengagement area, about 1.2km east of the western edge of the area and about 800m north of its southern edge (for previous observations, see SMM Daily Report 1 October 2018).

On the evening of 30 September, the SMM camera in Zolote recorded a projectile in flight from west-north-west to east-south-east 2-4km east-south-east (unable to assess whether inside or outside the disengagement area).

During the day on 1 October, positioned near all three disengagement areas, the SMM observed calm situations.

The SMM continued to monitor the withdrawal of weapons in implementation of the Memorandum and the Package of Measures and its Addendum.[2]

In violation of withdrawal lines in a government-controlled area, on 29 September, an SMM long-range UAV spotted a surface-to-air missile system (9K35, Strela-10) on the south-eastern edge of Starohnativka (51km south of Donetsk).

In violation of withdrawal lines in a non-government-controlled area, on 29 September, an SMM mid-range UAV spotted a tank (T-64) parked near a residential building in Verkhnoshyrokivske (formerly Oktiabr, 85km south of Donetsk).

Beyond withdrawal lines but outside designated storage sites in a government-controlled area, the SMM saw a surface-to-air missile system (9K37) loaded on a flatbed truck near the railway station in Rubizhne (84km north-west of Luhansk). (See SMM Daily Report 1 October 2018.)

The SMM revisited a permanent storage site whose location was beyond the respective withdrawal lines in a government-controlled area of Donetsk region and noted that the site continued to be abandoned and the following weapons were missing: 53 tanks (T-64) and seven mortars (five 2B9 Nona-S, 120mm, and two PM-38, 120mm).

The SMM observed armoured combat vehicles (ACVs), an anti-aircraft system[3] and other indications of military-type presence in the security zone. In government-controlled areas, on 29 September, an SMM long-range UAV spotted an infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) (BMP variant) near residential houses in Pyshchevyk (25km north-east of Mariupol), two IFVs (BMP-2) near Hnutove, a self-propelled anti-aircraft system (ZSU-23-4, 23mm) and an IFV (BMP variant) near Starohnativka, an armoured reconnaissance vehicle (BRDM-variant) near Nevelske (18km north-west of Donetsk) and two IFVs (BMP-1) and two armoured personnel carriers (APC) (MT-LB) on the eastern edge of Avdiivka (17km north-east of Donetsk). On 30 September, an SMM long-range UAV spotted an ACV near Krymske (42km north-west of Luhansk). On 1 October, the SMM saw an armoured reconnaissance vehicle (BRDM-2) near Petrivka (27km north of Luhansk).

In non-government-controlled areas, on 30 September, an SMM long-range UAV spotted a probable IFV (BMP-1) near Smile (31km north-west of Luhansk). On 1 October, the SMM saw two APCs (BTR variants) and an armoured reconnaissance vehicle (BRDM-2) in Luhansk city, as well as a convoy of about 30 military-type vehicles, including three APCs (two BTR-80 and one BTR-60) and two armoured command vehicles (undetermined types), near Oleksandrivsk (10km west of Luhansk) travelling towards Luhansk city.

The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to enable repairs to the phenol sludge reservoir near Zalizne (government-controlled, 42km north-east of Donetsk), the Krasnohorivka gas distribution station between Marinka (government-controlled, 23km south-west of Donetsk) and Oleksandrivka (non-government-controlled, 20km south-west of Donetsk) and high-voltage powerlines near Zhovte (non-government-controlled, 17km north-west of Luhansk). The SMM continued to facilitate the operation of the DFS, including through monitoring adherence to the ceasefire.

The SMM visited a border area outside of government control. While at a pedestrian border crossing point near Novoborovytsi (79km south of Luhansk) for about 20 minutes, the SMM did not observe the presence of the armed formations or pedestrians entering or exiting Ukraine.

On 28 September in Zhytomyr, west of Kyiv, the SMM monitored a hearing in the trial of a journalist charged with treason who is currently under house arrest. The SMM observed approximately 30 young men, most of whom had Sich insignia on their clothes, present in the courtroom. The SMM heard the young men verbally insulting the journalist and his defence team and saw small objects being thrown at them. Later, ten police officers in riot gear entered the courtroom, at which point the disruptions ceased. The judges ruled for the journalist’s house arrest to be extended by two months.

Also in Kyiv, the SMM followed up on reports that the premises of the Trade Representation of the Russian Federation had been spray-painted on 28 September. At 8A Shcherbakivskoho Street, on 29 September, the SMM saw remnants of cleaning agents on the gate and fence of the building housing the representation and, in front of the building, graffiti critical of the Russian Federation spray-painted on the pavement. Two women (aged 50-60), who said that they had been in a nearby shop at the time of the incident, told the SMM that, in the late afternoon of 28 September, a group of about 15-20 young men with covered faces had sprayed some graffiti on the fence and the pavement.

The SMM also followed up on reports that the office of a member of parliament had been damaged on the night of 29-30 September. At 16 Marshala Tymoshenko Street in Kyiv, on 30 September, the SMM saw that the glass of a window on the ground floor of the building had been shattered and the window had been covered with red paint. The SMM saw two young men attempting to remove the paint and noted that the entrance door to the building was locked.

The SMM continued monitoring in Kherson, Odessa, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kharkiv, Dnipro and Chernivtsi.

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

The SMM’s monitoring and freedom of movement are restricted by security hazards and threats, including risks posed by mines, unexploded ordnance (UXO) 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. They have also agreed that the Joint Centre for Control and Co-ordination (JCCC) should contribute to such response and co-ordinate mine clearance. Nonetheless, the armed formations in parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions frequently deny the SMM access to areas adjacent to Ukraine’s border outside control of the Government (for example, see below). The SMM’s operations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions remain restricted following the fatal incident of 23 April 2017 near Pryshyb; these restrictions continued to limit the Mission’s observations.

Denial of access:

• At a checkpoint north of Zaichenko (non-government-controlled, 26km north-east of Mariupol), armed members of the armed formations again stopped the SMM and denied it passage westward to Pikuzy (formerly Kominternove, non-government-controlled, 23km north-east of Mariupol) and southward to Sakhanka (non-government-controlled, 24km north-east of Mariupol), citing “security reasons”.
• At a checkpoint north of Novoazovsk (non-government-controlled, 40km east of Mariupol), armed members of the armed formations again prevented the SMM from proceeding to the city or towards the border with the Russian Federation.
• At a checkpoint north of Tavrycheske (non-government-controlled, 35km north-east of Mariupol), armed members of the armed formations denied the SMM passage.
• At a checkpoint near Bezimenne (non-government-controlled, 30km east of Mariupol), armed members of the armed formations prevented the SMM from proceeding west, citing “security reasons”.
• At the entrance to Sosnivske (non-government-controlled, 35km north-east of Mariupol), a car (Lada), which had come from the opposite direction, stopped and blocked the road, preventing the SMM from entering the village. An armed member of the armed formations then stepped out of the car and told the SMM that it would not be allowed to travel further “for the safety of the SMM”.

Regular restrictions related to disengagement areas and mines/UXO:

• The SMM was prevented from accessing parts of the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, with the exception of the main road, due to the possible presence of mines and UXO. A Ukrainian Armed Forces officer of the JCCC informed the SMM that no demining had taken place during the previous 24 hours. The SMM did not consider it safe to proceed and informed the JCCC.[4]
• The SMM was prevented from accessing secondary roads in the Zolote disengagement area due to the possible presence of mines and UXO. A Ukrainian Armed Forces officer of the JCCC informed the SMM that no demining had taken place during the previous 24 hours. The SMM did not consider it safe to proceed and informed the JCCC both times.5
• The SMM was prevented from accessing secondary roads south of the Zolote disengagement area due to the possible presence of mines and UXO. A member of the armed formations positioned on the southern side of the Zolote disengagement area informed the SMM that no demining had taken place during the previous 24 hours. The SMM did not consider it safe to proceed.
• At a checkpoint of the armed formations on the southern side of the bridge in Shchastia (government-controlled, 20km north of Luhansk), a member of the armed formations told the SMM that mines had not been cleared on the road leading north toward Shchastia. The SMM did not consider it safe to proceed.

Other impediments:

• While conducting a mini-UAV flight near Zhovte, the SMM heard about 50 shots of small-arms fire where the UAV was flying, about 2km south of the SMM’s position, assessed as aimed at the UAV. The SMM landed the UAV safely and departed the area. (See SMM Daily Report 5 July 2018.)
• On two occasions, the SMM temporarily lost communication with its mini-UAV due to signal interference while flying near Bohdanivka (government-controlled, 41km south-west of Donetsk).[5]

[1]     For a complete breakdown of the ceasefire violations, please see the annexed table.

[2] The paragraph on weapons observed in violation of withdrawal lines in SMM Daily Report 1 October 2018 should have read: “In violation of withdrawal lines, on 28 September, an SMM long-range unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) spotted a mortar (probable 82mm) within a known position of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Petrivske disengagement area.”

[3] This hardware is not proscribed by the provisions of the Minsk agreements on the withdrawal of weapons.

[4] The SMM informed Ukrainian Armed Forces officers of the JCCC. Russian Federation Armed Forces officers of the JCCC withdrew from the JCCC as of 18 December 2017.

[5] The interference could have originated from anywhere in a radius of several kilometres of the UAV’s position.