Austrian OSCE Chairmanship on the escalation of violence in Ukraine

VIENNA, 31 January 2017 - With regard to the latest developments in eastern Ukraine, a spokesperson of the OSCE Chairmanship declared today:

“The OSCE Chairmanship is seriously concerned about the increasing violence in eastern Ukraine and its impact on the civilian population. The recent upsurge in fighting around Avdiivka and Yasnyuvata, leading to deaths and injuries on both sides, including among civilians, is not acceptable. We urge the sides to immediately stop the hostilities and give full and safe access to OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) staff to monitor and report on the situation.

The impact of the fighting on the civilian population has been severe; there is little or no access to water, heating or power for many thousands of people on both sides of the contact line. These dire humanitarian consequences are compounded by the current harsh winter conditions.

The OSCE Chairmanship urges both sides to return without delay to the ceasefire to which they have repeatedly committed themselves. We expect the sides to demonstrate responsibility in this situation and to generate tangible results in this week’s meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group.”

The OSCE’s Permanent Council will assess the situation in a special meeting scheduled for the afternoon of 31 January 2017.