The forces of the self-proclaimed Donetsk Peoples Republic (DPR) deny involvement in ceasefire violations near a patrol of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) close to the Holmivskyi settlement in Donbas and believe that the fire was carried out from the territory under the Ukrainian army's control, a DPR official said on Friday.
DONETSK (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th August, 2018) The forces of the self-proclaimed Donetsk Peoples Republic (DPR) deny involvement in ceasefire violations near a patrol of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) close to the Holmivskyi settlement in Donbas and believe that the fire was carried out from the territory under the Ukrainian army's control, a DPR official said on Friday.
On Thursday, the OSCE SMM said two explosions occurred near the place where the missions vehicles and personnel were positioned on the territory beyond the Ukrainian government's control. The blasts were followed by fire from small arms. The SMM was dispatched to the area to ensure ceasefire during repair work there. Employees of the Voda Donbassa company and representatives of Donbas militias accompanied the SMM at the site of the incident.
"The provocative shelling was carried out from the territory which is under control of the Ukrainian Armed Forces," Ruslan Yakubov, the DPR representative in the Joint Center on Control and Coordination (JCCC), said.
The official continued by saying that that the positions of the Ukrainian security forces were located close to the site of the incident due to the Kiev forces advance into neutral territory. This allows the Ukrainian law enforcement to use not only mortars but small arms in the area, according to Yakubov.
The representatives of the DPR had informed the JCCC about the ceasefire violation by the Ukrainian side, Yakubov pointed out.
The presence of the DPR representatives at the site targeted by the shelling made it clear that the militias were not behind the attack, Yakubov stated.
The conflict in Donbas between local militias and the central Kiev authorities has been raging since 2014. Efforts to stabilize the situation have been made by the Normandy Four group comprising Russia, Ukraine, France, and Germany.
In particular, the Normandy Four brokered the Minsk peace accords, which were signed by the sides to the conflict in a bid to end hostilities in the area. However, unrest in Donbas continues.
