Ukraine to demand expansion of OSCE mandate in Donbas – Prystaiko

13.12.2019 11:30

Ukrinform

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine has instructed the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the International Organizations in Vienna during a meeting on December 17 to raise the issue of round-the-clock monitoring by the Special Monitoring Mission over the observance of ceasefire in Donbas.

Foreign Minister of Ukraine Vadym Prystaiko said this during the Right to Power talk show late on Thursday, December 12, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

“Next Tuesday, a meeting of the OSCE Permanent Representatives in Vienna will take place, and our Permanent Mission has been instructed to raise the issue of what the leaders [of the Normandy Four] agreed on. We want the SMM to expand its mandate and be able to verify and monitor compliance with the ceasefire," Prystaiko said.

The second issue to be raised at the meeting is the monitoring by the SMM observers of the Ukrainian-Russian border and whether they can stay there, the minister said.

As reported, the Normandy Four summit was held in Paris on December 9. It was attended by the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, France, and Germany.

The Normandy Four leaders emphasized the need to expand the OSCE SMM mandate, granting a possibility of round-the-clock monitoring.

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