Contents tagged with Donbas

  • OSCE drone shot down in the Donbas

    The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), reports on their website, that an unmanned aerial vehicle that belonged to the monitoring mission was shot down in the area of Popasna village in the Donbas.

    It is noted that the village is controlled by the Ukrainian government and is located 69 kilometers west of Luhansk. The mission team was using the drone to watch snow removal work on the T-0504 highway. At this time, the OSCE staff heard the sound of six shots. According to …

  • Ukrainian Foreign Minister: several foreign ministers will visit Donbas

    Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin announced the visit of “several foreign colleagues” to the Donbas on January 15, particularly the Foreign Minister of Slovakia, Miroslav Lajčák, Interfax-Ukraine reports. 

    "Many Ministers of our friendly countries will visit Mariupol next week. The new OSCE Head, Mr. Lajčák will also visit the Donbas. I will not say where we are going, for safety reasons. And there will be many contacts,” Klimkin said. According to the media, the Foreign Ministers of …

  • The Pope expresses concern about the conflict in the Donbas

    On Monday, January 7, Pope Francis expressed his concern about the conflict in the east of Ukraine during the New Year's reception of the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See. He also added that in the conflict that has been going on for five years, “new alarming events in the Black Sea” recently occurred. However, he did not mention Russia.

    The head of the Roman Catholic Church urged adherence to a “peaceful resolution of the conflict” and called for respect for international law, …

  • Medical humanitarian aid from France arrives in Donbas

    The United Force operation press service reported that humanitarian medical supplies worth over UAH 2.1 million or approximately $77,777, sent from France, will be received by military and civilian medical institutions in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

    “On January 3rd, 2019, according to planned activities, humanitarian cargo for medical purposes in the amount of more than 2.1 million UAH arrived from France. After distributing the orthoses, medical furniture and equipment, medical clothes …

  • Kyiv: Ukrainian soldier captured by pro-Russian militants in the Donbas

    The Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed the fact that a soldier of the 128th Separate Mountain Assault Brigade of Zakarpattia was captured by pro-Russian militants in the Donbas, reported the Brigade’s press-service on Facebook on Thursday, January 3.

    The separatists’ website published a video of the captured Ukrainian soldier. The Brigade Command confirmed that it was indeed their soldier, Andriy Kachynskyi from Berestivka village of the Volodymyrets district in the Rivne region. Kachynskyi …

  • Austrian Chancellor: Lifting of sanctions against Russia must be linked with the resolution of the situation in Donbas

    In an interview with the Rheinische Post, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said that the gradual lifting of sanctions against Russia should be linked with the process of resolving the situation in the Donbas. 

    “When I was a foreign minister, I believed that it was necessary to link the gradual lifting of sanctions against Russia with positive steps towards Ukraine – something that former German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier proposed. The first step would imply establishing a real …

  • Ukrainian Armed Forces took control of strategic height near Horlivka

    Units of the Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces have completed the fortification of new defensive positions between the settlements Zaitseve and Hladosove near the city of Horlivka, reported the Verkhovna Rada deputy Dmytro Tymchuk.

    "In order to increase defense capabilities, the units of the mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Joint Forces took under their control advantageous for future defensive actions natural frontier and, while being in close proximity to the enemy, …

  • Christmas truce begins in the Donbas

    Starting at midnight on December 29th, in the zone of operation of the Ukrainian Joint Forces on the territories of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions a “Christmas truce” has been enacted.

    The ceasefire was agreed upon during a Skype conference of the Trilateral Contact Group on December 27th.

    This will be the 18th “Christmas truce” since the start of hostilities in the Donbas.

    All previous truces have been systematically violated by pro-Russian militants on the very first day.

    At the same …

  • Ukraine strengthens its air defense near the Sea of Azov

    The Head of the Ukrainian Joint Forces Operation (JFO) press center, Vitaliy Sarantsev said that Ukraine has deployed anti-sabotage forces and has strengthened its air defense in near the Azov Sea, UNIAN reports.   He explained that these were necessary preparations against possible Russian threats. Sarantsev did not specify where exactly the new troops are located but he added that additional fortifications were established near the Azov Sea and that communication between joint forces …

  • Ukrainian military commander: There are 11,000 Russians fighting in the Donbas 

    There are currently 11,000 Russians in the Donbas in the hybrid Russian regular military formations, said Lieutenant-General Serhiy Nayev, Commander of Ukraine’s Joint Forces Operation in eastern Ukraine, on December 27. 

    “We are aware of the presence of Russian regular military formations in the temporarily occupied territories of the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces – the first and second army corps, with a total size of roughly 32,000 people, 11,000 of whom are Russians. The leadership …