News and press releases

• Compared with the previous 24 hours, the SMM recorded a similar number of ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions. • The Mission saw that the former forward positions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and of the armed formations inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area continued to be dismantled. • It observed ceasefire violations inside the Zolote disengagement area. • The SMM spotted a weapon in violation of withdrawal lines near residential houses in government-controlled Chabanivka. • The Mission monitored adherence to the ceasefire to facilitate the operation of essential civilian infrastructure. • Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at checkpoints in non-government-controlled Bezimenne and Zaichenko.

The Observer Mission (OM) continues to operate 24/7 at both Border Crossing Points (BCPs). The overall number of border crossings by persons increased at both BCPs compared to the previous week...

• Compared with the previous reporting period, between the evenings of 23 and 24 August, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region. • Between the evenings of 24 and 25 August, the Mission recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region, compared with the previous 24 hours. • The SMM saw that the former forward positions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and of the armed formations inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area continued to be dismantled. • The Mission spotted a weapon in violation of the withdrawal line in government-controlled Avdiivka. • The SMM continued to facilitate the operation of the Donetsk Filtration Station. • The Mission monitored public gatherings on the occasion of National Flag Day and Ukrainian Independence Day in various cities. • Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at a checkpoint in non-government-controlled Verkhnoshyrokivske...

• Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. • The Mission saw damage to a farm near Novoluhanske. • On 23 August, it saw members of the armed formations taking down a wall at their former forward position and personnel from the State Emergency Services of Ukraine cutting trees and branches inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area. • Small-arms fire was assessed as directed at an SMM mini-unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) near Zolote-5/Mykhailivka. • The SMM spotted weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near government-controlled Raihorodka and non-government-controlled Ternove. • It saw new anti-tank mines south of the bridge in Shchastia. • An SMM long-range UAV spotted a cargo train heading south-west as well as a cargo train probably loaded with coal in Kumshatske.

• Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and fewer in Luhansk region. • The Mission continued to monitor the situation in the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area. • The SMM saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near non-government-controlled Bile. • The Mission monitored adherence to the ceasefire to facilitate repairs to and the operation of essential civilian infrastructure, including repairs to a phenol sludge reservoir near Zalizne. • Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at a checkpoint in non-government-controlled Verkhnoshyrokivske.*

• Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region. • The Mission continued to monitor the situation in the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area. • The SMM saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines in non-government-controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. • The Mission monitored adherence to the ceasefire to facilitate repairs to and the operation of essential civilian infrastructure, including repairs to a phenol sludge reservoir. • Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at checkpoints in non-government-controlled Verkhnoshyrokivske and Donetsk city’s Petrovskyi district.

The 11th annual OSCE regional workshop “Explosive Hazards Reduction and Response: Countering Improvised Explosive Devices (C-IEDs)” is taking place in Issyk-Kul, Kyrgyzstan 18-23 August, 2019. The five-day event brought together over thirty international experts to discuss recent developments in national, regional, and global C-IEDs strategies. The workshop was organized by the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek and the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe in close co-operation with the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Kyrgyzstan...