Latest from the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), based on information received as of 19:30, 26 March 2019

This report is for the media and the general public.

Summary

• Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
• The SMM saw fresh craters in Sentianivka and damage to a house in Marinka.
• The Mission recorded ceasefire violations, including explosions, inside the Zolote disengagement area. Inside the same area, it also observed military presence and hardware, as well as anti-tank mines across road T-1316.
• It observed weapons in violation of the withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line.
• The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to enable repairs to essential civilian infrastructure.
• Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued in all three disengagement areas. In addition, it was restricted at a checkpoint near Verkhnoshyrokivske, in a non-government-controlled area of southern Donetsk region.*

Ceasefire violations[1]

In Donetsk region, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations, including about 260 explosions, compared with the previous reporting period (about 160 explosions). The majority of ceasefire violations were recorded in areas south-east of Chermalyk (government-controlled, 31km north-east of Mariupol), south-east and south-west of Svitlodarsk (government-controlled, 57km north-east of Donetsk), as well as in areas west of Horlivka (non-government-controlled, 39km north-east of Donetsk).

In Luhansk region, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations, including about 60 explosions, compared with the previous reporting period (about 30 explosions). The majority of ceasefire violations, including the majority of explosions, were assessed as inside the disengagement area near Zolote (government-controlled, 60km west of Luhansk) (see Disengagement areas).

Craters in Sentianivka and damage to a house in Marinka

The SMM saw three fresh craters in a field about 50m north of a one-storey house at 20 Shevchenka Street in Sentianivka (formerly Frunze, non-government-controlled, 44km west of Luhansk). Due to security concerns, the SMM could not approach the craters to assess the calibre and direction of fire. About 20m north of the house, the SMM also saw a hole (150mm in diameter) in the west-facing outer wall of a henhouse and another hole (30mm in diameter) in its roof. At 22 Shevchenka Street, the SMM saw four shattered window panes: one in the north-facing window, one in the east-facing window and two in the south-facing window.

At 1 Moskalevskoho Street in Marinka (government-controlled, 23km south-west of Donetsk), the SMM saw a hole in the north-facing part of the roof on a one-storey house (the SMM noted that a sheet of plywood had been placed over the hole to repair the roof). The SMM assessed the hole as caused by a round of an undetermined weapon fired from a north-easterly direction.

Disengagement areas[2]

On 25 March, inside the Zolote disengagement area, an SMM long-range unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) again spotted an anti-aircraft gun (ZU-23, 23mm) about 600m south of its northern edge. The same day, an SMM mini-UAV spotted an infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) (BMP-1) south of the railway tracks, about 550m south of the area’s northern edge, and another IFV (BMP-1) about 500m south-west of the aforementioned vehicle, both assessed as belonging to the Ukrainian Armed Forces (for previous observations see, SMM Daily Report 20 March 2019 and SMM Daily Report 26 March 2019). The same UAV again spotted ten anti-tank mines (TM-62) on road T-1316, about 1km south of the disengagement area’s northern edge. It also again spotted about 60 anti-tank mines (TM-62) in fields inside the disengagement area, about 90m south of its northern edge and about 70m east of road T-1316.

During the evening of 25 March, the SMM camera in Zolote recorded an undetermined explosion at an assessed range of 2-3km south-east (assessed as inside the disengagement area). During the day on 26 March, positioned on the south-western edge of Berezivske (non-government-controlled, 53km north-west of Luhansk), the SMM heard about 40 undetermined explosions and about 80 bursts of heavy-machine-gun fire, all at an assessed range of 4-6km west (assessed as inside the Zolote disengagement area).

The same day, positioned inside the disengagement area near Stanytsia Luhanska (government-controlled, 16km north-east of Luhansk), the SMM observed a calm situation.

Withdrawal of weapons

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

Weapons in violation

Government-controlled areas

26 March

The SMM saw a surface-to-air missile system (9K33 Osa) heading south on road H-21 near Voitove (33km north-west of Luhansk).

Non-government-controlled areas

25 March

An SMM mini-UAV spotted two mortars (type undetermined, 120mm) near Donetskyi (49km west of Luhansk).

Beyond withdrawal lines but outside of designated storage sites:

Government-controlled areas

26 March

The SMM saw six tanks (T-72) in a training area near Andriivka (61km south of Donetsk).

Non-government-controlled areas

25 March

An SMM long-range UAV spotted:

• 21 tanks (11 T-64 and ten T-72), nine self-propelled howitzers (2S1 Gvozdika, 122mm), 12 towed howitzers (D-30 Lyagushka, 122mm),  six anti-tank guns (MT-12 Rapira, 100mm), 15 towed mortars (probable 2B11 Sani, 120mm) and nine surface-to-air missile systems (9K35 Strela-10) in a training area near Myrne (28km south-west of Luhansk), and
• five self-propelled howitzers (2S1 Gvozdika, 122mm) and two anti-tank guns (MT-12 Rapira, 100mm) in a training area near Shymshynivka (27km south-west of Luhansk).

Indications of military and military-type presence inside the security zone[3]

Government-controlled areas

25 March

An SMM mini-UAV spotted four IFVs (three BMP-1 and a BMP-2) and an armoured combat vehicle (type undetermined) near the Ukrainian Armed Forces checkpoint north of the Zolote disengagement area.

An SMM mid-range UAV spotted:

• an armoured personnel carrier (APC) (MT-LB), five IFVs (four BMP-1 and one BMP-2) and two anti-aircraft guns (ZU-23) near Novooleksandrivka (65km west of Luhansk). The same UAV also spotted a 15m-long extension of a trench south-west of the settlement (not seen in imagery from 5 March 2019), a recently dug 20m-long extension of a trench east of it, as well as a recently dug 190m-long trench system north of it (both trenches not seen in imagery from 15 October 2018).
• an armoured reconnaissance vehicle (BRM-1K) and recently-dug trenches (totalling 200m in length) and firing positions (not visible in imagery from 5 September 2018) about 150m from residential houses in Chermalyk.

An SMM long-range UAV spotted:

• two IFVs (BMP-2) in Zolote-4/Rodina (59km west of Luhansk) and
• an IFV (probable BMP-2) east of Popasna (69km west of Luhansk).

26 March

The SMM saw an APC (type undetermined) 2km south of Nyzhnoteple (26km north of Luhansk).

Non-government-controlled areas25 MarchAn SMM long-range UAV spotted five APCs (MT-LB) near Pervomaisk (58km west of Luhansk).

26 March

The SMM saw:

• an APC (MT-LB variant) in Kadiivka (formerly Stakhanov, 50west of Luhansk) and
• an anti-aircraft gun (ZU-23) in Kalynove (60km west of Luhansk).

Mine hazard signs

On the eastern edge of Nova Marivka (non-government-controlled, 64km south of Donetsk), the SMM saw a fallen tree spanning more than half of the width of a road, with an improvised mine hazard sign fastened to it and a white board with “Stop! Mines” written in Russian. Near Kalynove-Borshchuvate (non-government-controlled, 61km west of Luhansk), the SMM saw for the first time three red signs with “Stop! Mines” written in Russian attached to wooden planks in fields north and south of road H-32.

SMM facilitation of repairs to civilian infrastructure

The SMM continued to facilitate and monitor adherence to the ceasefire to enable repairs to water wells at the Petrivske pumping station near Artema (government-controlled, 26km north of Luhansk), water pipelines near Popasna and power transmission lines near Myrna Dolyna (government-controlled, 67km north-west of Luhansk). The SMM continued to facilitate the operation of the Donetsk Filtration Station (15km north of Donetsk) and monitor the security situation around the pumping station near Vasylivka (non-government-controlled, 20km north of Donetsk).

Border areas outside government control

While at a border crossing point near Marynivka (78km east of Donetsk) for about an hour, the SMM saw nine cars (two with Ukrainian and five with Russian Federation licence plates, as well as two with “DPR” plates), two minibuses (one with Ukrainian licence plates and one with “DPR” plates) and two pedestrians (a man and a woman, aged 60-70) entering Ukraine. The SMM saw 17 cars (six with Ukrainian, six with Russian Federation and one with Georgian licence plates, as well as four with “DPR” plates), four minibuses (one with Ukrainian, one with Russian Federation and one with Armenian licence plates, as well as one with “DPR” plates), two covered cargo trucks (one with Belarusian licence plates and one with “DPR” plates) and two buses (with “DPR” plates and about 20-30 people on board) exiting Ukraine. 

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

*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 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 SMM Daily Report 25 March 2019). 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:

• A member of the armed formations denied the SMM passage at a checkpoint about 600m west of Verkhnoshyrokivske (non-government-controlled, 29km north-east of Mariupol), citing ongoing demining activities in Pikuzy (formerly Kominternove, non-government-controlled, 23km north-east of Mariupol).

Regular restrictions related to disengagement areas and mines/UXO:

• The sides continued to deny the SMM full access to the three disengagement areas, as well as the ability to travel certain roads previously identified as important for effective monitoring by the Mission and for civilians’ movement, through failure to conduct comprehensive clearance of mines and UXO.

[1] For a complete breakdown of ceasefire violations, please see the annexed table. During the reporting period, the SMM camera in Krasnohorivka was not operational.

[2]Disengagement is foreseen in the Framework Decision of the Trilateral Contact Group relating to disengagement of forces and hardware of 21 September 2016.

[3] The hardware mentioned in this section is not proscribed by the provisions of the Minsk agreements on the withdrawal of weapons, unless otherwise specified.