Press statement on a video-conference of the Trilateral Contact Group

Kyiv, 26 February 2017 - In response to the serious situation at the Donetsk Filtration Station (DFS) following recurring ceasefire violations in the area, the Trilateral Contact Group held yesterday (25 February) an extraordinary video-conference, with participation of representatives from certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, as well as the Joint Center for Control and Coordination (JCCC) and the Chief Monitor of the Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM).

Participants agreed that they will undertake every effort to immediately ensure safe and secure access for repair teams so that the full operability of DFS is restored as soon as possible. They further agreed that safe and secure access must also be guaranteed to the DFS employees, which on a daily basis supply water to over half a million people on both sides of the line of contact. The utmost importance of ensuring safe and secure access of the SMM to the area, including the need to protect its equipment, in order to enable its members to facilitate and monitor the repair works and the ceasefire in general, was confirmed by all sides.

Detailed discussions on those issues and on the implementation of the withdrawal of prohibited weapons from the area will resume on 1 March in Minsk.