Latet from the OC pecial Monitoring Miion to Ukraine (MM), aed on information received a of 19:30, 20 Novemer 2018 KYIV 21 November 2018 This report is for the media and the general public. Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasere violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The Mission followed up on reports of a grenade explosion in Khartsyzk in which a woman was injured and a man died. The Mission recorded ceasere violations inside the Zolote disengagement area. The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasere to enable repairs to essential civilian infrastructure near Artema and Holmivskyi, as well as repairs to houses in Marinka and Krasnohorivka. It continued to facilitate the operation of the Donetsk Filtration Station. Access for the SMM remained restricted in all three disengagement areas, near Syvash and near Novoazovsk, an area close to the border with the Russian Federation.* The Mission monitored protests in Kyiv, Lviv and Chernivtsi. Ceasere violations[1] In Donetsk region, the SMM recorded fewer ceasere violations, including about 60 explosions, compared with the previous reporting period (about 120 explosions). The majority of ceasere violations were recorded in areas south and south-west of the Donetsk Filtration Station (DFS), south-east of Svitlodarsk (government-controlled, 57km north-east of Donetsk) and east of Lomakyne (government-controlled, 15km north-east of Mariupol). In Luhansk region, the SMM recorded fewer ceasere violations, including 34 explosions, compared with the previous reporting period (about 200 explosions). The majority of ceasere violations were recorded in areas west of Kadiivka (formerly Stakhanov, non-government-controlled, 50km west of Luhansk) and south-west of Stanytsia Luhanska (government-controlled, 16km north- east of Luhansk). Reports of a woman injured and a man killed in a grenade explosion The SMM followed up on reports of a grenade explosion in Khartsyzk (non-government-controlled, 26km east of Donetsk) on 6 November in which a man died and a woman suered injuries. On 20 November, in Novoamvrosiivske (non-government- controlled, 56km east of Donetsk), the SMM saw a woman (in her thirties) with two scars: one on the right side of her chest and the other one on the left temple. The woman said that she had been injured in an accidental explosion of a grenade brought home to their apartment in Khartsyzk on 6 November by her partner (male, in his thirties). Medical sta at a municipal hospital in Khartsyzk told the SMM that a woman with shrapnel wounds had been admitted on 6 November and the body of a man had been brought to the hospital’s morgue. Disengagement areas[2] During the day on 20 November, positioned on the southern edge of the disengagement area near Zolote (58km west of Luhansk), the SMM heard eight shots of small-arms re at an assessed range of 1-2km north-north-west, assessed as inside the disengagement area. On the same day, positioned inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, 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. Beyond the withdrawal lines but outside designated storage sites Government-controlled areas: 19 November: an SMM mini-unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) spotted a self-propelled howitzer (2S1 Gvozdika,122mm) north-west of Smolianynove (61km north-west of Luhansk). 20 November: a surface-to-air missile system (9K33 Osa) near Selidove (41km north-west of Donetsk). Indications of military and military-type presence in the security zone[3] Government-controlled areas: 20 November: an armoured personnel carrier (APC) (BTR-70) near Makarove (19km north-east of Luhansk); an APC (BTR-80) near Shchastia (20km north of Luhansk); an infantry ghting vehicle (IFV) (BMP-1) and an armoured recovery vehicle (undetermined variant) south of Romanivka (41km north of Donetsk). Non-government-controlled areas: 17 November: an SMM mini-UAV spotted three IFVs (BMP-2) near Vesela Hora (16km north of Luhansk). Presence of mines On 19 November, an SMM mid-range UAV spotted 31 newly laid anti-tank mines (TM-62) laid out in three rows in a eld about 1.7km north-east of Vodiane (government-controlled, 94km south of Donetsk), near 11 previously observed anti-tank mines (TM- 62). SMM facilitation of repairs to civilian infrastructure The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasere to enable repair works to the Petrivske water pumping station near Artema (government-controlled, 26km north of Luhansk), to power lines and a water tower near Holmivskyi (non-government- controlled, 49km north-east of Donetsk) and repairs to houses in Marinka (government-controlled, 23km south-west of Donetsk) and Krasnohorivka (government-controlled, 21km west of Donetsk). The Mission continued to facilitate the operation of the DFS. Public gatherings in Kyiv, Lviv and Chernivtsi The SMM monitored two public gatherings in Kyiv. In front of the Cabinet of Ministers building at 12/2 Mykhaila Hrushevskoho Street, the Mission saw about 70 people (all women, aged 40-50) carrying banners with messages demanding the dismissal of a senior government ocial, ags of Ukraine and various Ukrainian cities, as well as banners reading “Women for Peace”. On the site, the SMM saw 40 law enforcement ocers and observed a peaceful situation. In front of the Parliament building at 5 Mykhaila Hrushevskoho Street, the Mission again saw a protest related to import taxes on vehicles. It observed about 300 cars with foreign licence plates blocking o a section of Mykhaila Hrushevskoho Street to trac, about 300 people (mostly men, mixed ages) holding yellow and blue ags of “Auto Euro Power” and posters criticising import taxes on vehicles, as well as a burned car on a parked at-bed truck. At the site, the SMM saw about 400 law enforcement ocers, many of them in riot gear, and observed no incidents. The Mission also monitored two protests related to import taxes on vehicles in Lviv on 19 and 20 November and a protest in Chernivtsi on 20 November where it also observed a peaceful situation. In Lviv, the SMM also monitored a public gathering outside the city hall building at 1 Rynok Square. The Mission saw about 50 persons wearing white face masks and chanting “Glory to Ukraine”, some of them holding lit smoke ares and carrying banners with messages denouncing corruption in the local government (all in Ukrainian language). After the public gathering ended, when the participants removed their masks, the SMM saw they were all young males. The SMM continued monitoring in Kherson, Odessa, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kharkiv and Dnipro. *Restrictions of SMM’s freedom of movement or other impediments to fullment 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 Joint Centre for Control and Co-ordination (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 below). 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. Denials of access: At a checkpoint north of Novoazovsk (non-government-controlled, 40km east of Mariupol), two armed members of the armed formations again prevented the SMM from proceeding towards Novoazovsk, citing ongoing “special operations”. Regular restrictions related to disengagement areas and mines/UXO: The SMM continued be restricted in its access to the three disengagement areas, as well as in the ability to travel on certain roads identied by the Mission as important for eective monitoring due to the presence of mines and UXO. [1] For a complete breakdown of ceasere violations, please see the annexed table. The SMM cameras in Hranitne, Krasnohorivka and Shyrokyne were not operational during the reporting period. * Please see the section at the end of this report entitled “Restrictions of the SMM’s freedom of movement or other impediments to fullment of its mandate”. [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. Contact Dragana Nikolic-Solomon Liudmyla Palamar Chief of Press and Public Information Unit National Outreach Ocer OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine 26 Turhenievska Street 26 Turhenievska Street 01054 Kyiv 01054 Kyiv Ukraine Ukraine Oce: +380 44 392 08 55 Oce: +380 44 392 0965 Mobile: +380 95 291 99 18 Mobile: +38 067 828 06 79 [email protected] Mobile: +38 050 387 93 98 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected].