Ridder described the situation as alarming. She recalled that the special monitoring mission is not only the largest and most visible operation of the OSCE, but also one of the most important operations.
Committed to monitoring and impartially reporting on the situation in Ukraine since 2014, it has become an invaluable tool for documenting ceasefire violations, providing important data to politicians and facilitating dialogue between warring parties.
“Following Russia’s decision not to renew the mandate of the OSCE observer mission at the Gukovo and Donetsk checkpoints on the Russian-Ukrainian border after September 30, the SMM became the last remaining OSCE tool to provide some transparency in the seven-year conflict with more than 14,000 dead,” stated in the OSCE PA.
As Ridder emphasized, restrictions on SMM staff “further limit transparency and undermine confidence.”
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