OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Dačić welcomes agreement on withdrawal of weapons in eastern Ukraine reached within the Trilateral Contact Group

NEW YORK, 29 September 2015 – OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić welcomed the agreement on withdrawal of tanks, artillery under 100mm and mortars up to 120mm in eastern Ukraine, which was reached in Minsk today by the Working Group on Security of the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG).

“Today’s agreement is a good sign of the will of all to continue the peace process, which is the only way towards the goal I believe we all share – return to peace,” Dačić said. “It shall also provide an additional boost to strengthening the ceasefire, which has been holding for almost a month.”

“Now is the time to further increase the level of trust between all the sides and speed up the implementation of measures in the political, humanitarian and economic fields,” said Dačić. “We must do everything within out power to seize the momentum today’s agreement has provided for furthering the political process, and for making further steps towards full implementation of the Minsk agreements.”

Dačić commended everyone who contributed to today’s important agreement, especially the Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine Chief Monitor, Ambassador Ertugrul Apakan, who is heading the Working Group on Security, and the CiO Special Representative to Ukraine and the TCG Ambassador Martin Sajdik. The SMM shall monitor its implementation, which is why it is crucial to ensure that it has full access to all areas, as well as that it is guaranteed safety and security of its monitors.