The situation on the front between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed militant gangs in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions has become more volatile at a time when Russia is concentrating troops on Ukraine’s borders and plans to invade Ukraine.
“The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (SMM) has observed a dramatic increase in kinetic activity along the hotline in eastern Ukraine,” the OSCE said in a statement. The OSCE added that the number of such ceasefire violations was similar to that reported before the July 2020 ceasefire agreement.
The OSCE reported 222 ceasefire violations in the Donetsk region on Thursday, including 135 explosions, compared to 189 on Wednesday and 24 on Tuesday.
The OSCE also reported 648 ceasefire violations, including 519 explosions, in the Luhansk region on Thursday, compared with 402 on Wednesday and 129 on Tuesday.
The OSCE called on both sides to “adhere to all the commitments they have made and to take all necessary steps to reduce tensions and work towards immediate de-escalation for the lives of innocent civilians”.
In 2014, the OSCE, of which the United States and Russia are members, deployed its peacekeeping mission in eastern Ukraine following the annexation of Crimea by Moscow. The armed conflict between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatist militants has claimed more than 140,000 lives.
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