Today, on October 15th, a meeting of the working group for security issues at the talks in Minsk was held. The agenda included questions about the implementation of the current ceasefire and compliance with additional measures for strengthening and controlling it, as well as problematic issues about the implementation of the Framework Decision.

According to the DPR Representative Office to the JCCC and negotiating process, between the meetings in Minsk, from October 1st to 15th, 2 civilians were injured as a result of AFU attacks, 64 houses were damaged, as well as 7 infrastructure facilities. The Ukrainian side 301 times engaged the territory of the Republic with tanks, 152 and 122 mm artillery and 120 and 82 mm mortars:

Tanks were used 6 times, 19 rounds fired,;

  • 152 mm artillery was used once – 12 shells;
  • 122 mm artillery was used once – 2 shells;
  • 120 mm mortars were used 55 times – 377 shells;
  • 82 mm were used 49 times, firing 299 shells on the territory of the Republic.

The hot spots remained the surroundings of Gorlovka and the south of the Republic, as well as Staromikhailovka, Donetsk (Trudovskaya mine’s village, Volvo Center), Dokuchayevsk, Yasinovataya, as well as Kominternovo and Sakhanka.

Official representative of the Republic Aleksey Nikonorov noted the worsening security situation.

“The situation at the contact line continues to deteriorate and raises concerns. The Ukrainian side increasingly attacks the territory of the Republic, including residential quarters, by using various weapons. So, only on the evening of October 6th and on the morning of October 7th, 35 civilian houses, a kindergarten and dentistry in Staromikhailovka were damaged by AFU fire,” the representative of the Republic emphasized.

In addition, Aleksey Nikonorov provided statistics on the deployment of heavy weapons of the AFU based on the reports of the OSCE SMM.

“Since our last meeting on October 1st, the mission has documented the presence of 94 units of military equipment and heavy armament of the AFU, which are deployed in violation of established disengagement lines and outside designated storage areas along the line of contact with the DPR, including 41 tanks, 11 MLRS, 39 units of 100mm and 152mm self-propelled and towed artillery, as well as 3 air defense systems,” Nikonorov stated.

In addition, Aleksey Nikonorov focused the fact that the armed formations of Ukraine continue to impede the work of observers and technical means, which record violations at the contact line, of the mission. He said that according to OSCE SMM reports, between October 1th and 14th, the armed formations of Ukraine jammed UAVs 17 times.

As part of the discussion on the issue of the withdrawal of forces and means, the representative of the Republic said that the necessary measures had been taken by the DPR to confirm the readiness to proceed with the renewed withdrawal at the disengagement site near Petrovskoye.

“The Ukrainian side not only failed to fulfill its obligations according to the schedule approved at the last meeting of the Contact Group, but also opened provocative fire on the day when the process of eliminating violations on the site was supposed to begin, thereby endangering the life and health of OSCE SMM observers, representatives of the DPR to the JCCC, as well as numerous media representatives,” Aleksey Nikonorov emphasized.

At the same time, the representative of the Republic said that the DPR is ready to renew its obligations under the agreed schedule in the context of the implementation of the Framework Decision, and also called on the representatives of Kiev to stop politicizing the process of the withdrawal of forces and means and to begin real actions to settle the conflict.