OSCE OBSERVERS: A RECORD NUMBER OF SHELLINGS, 30 THOUSAND RUSSIAN MILITARY CROSSED THE UKRAINIAN BORDER

The OSCE observers reported that 30,000 military in Russia's Army uniform have arrived to the occupied part of Donbass. According to the international monitoring mission representatives the Russian military have crossed the Ukrainian-Russian border in the checkpoints of Gukovo and Donetsk (Rostov region, RF).

Since the conflict outbreak Russia has always been trying to prevent the mission to perform their tasks, and if the fact of the arrival of such an abundance of military was recorded on checkpoints, where the OSCE employees can work properly, then just mage the volume of military equipment and manpower flow that goes to the occupied region through checkpoints, that aren't monitored by the mission.

The OSCE representatives note that in last months Russian side have stubbornly refused to allow the mission to expand work along the Ukraine-Russia border. Obviously, in this manner Moscow tries to prevent the observers to objectively evaluate the whole picture and record all border violations by Russian troops. 

The OSCE representative noted that in last months Russian side have stubbornly refused to allow the mission to expand work along the Ukraine-Russia border. Obviously, in this manner Moscow tries to prevent the observers to objectively evaluate the whole picture and record all border violations by Russian troops. He added, that the mission fixed 27 facts of crossing the border by trucks with "cargo 200," who delivered bodies of soldiers back to Russia.

In addition the OSCE mission has observed drastic increase of hostilities in the eastern Ukraine starting the last week. Part of the Mariupol sector between Maryinka and Popasna stands as the tensest area. 

Over the last week the number of ceasefire violations in eastern Ukraine increased one and a half times. It is the highest number since the beginning of this year. Almost three and a half thousand explosions were made from mortars, tanks or multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS), said Alexander Hug, Principal Deputy Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) in Ukraine speaking at a press-briefing at Ukraine Crisis Media Center. “This represents a dramatic increase in the use of these Minsk-proscribed weapons, a six-fold increase on the previous week. It was, in fact, the highest number of such explosions ever recorded,” Hug noted. 

He said almost two thirds of these explosions made with the use of banned weapons were registered in the western part of Luhansk region. “In areas around Novozvanivka, Kalynove, Veselohorivka and Troyitske our monitors witnessed particularly violent night-time artillery and MLRS exchanges,” Hug reported. Over the last week monitors registered 2,148 explosions from artillery, 113 from multiple rocket launchers and 55 from mortar mines. THis once again proves that the Minsk agreement are prefable for the Russian side first of all, by means of it the Kremlin's lobby groups have just forced the Ukrainian side to withdraw its heavy weapons, which makes it impossible to counter to the terrorists properly.

Alexander Hug noted that majority of ceasefire violations except for the ones near Mariupol are happening along the arch that stretches between Maryinka and the northern-eastern area near Popasna. Many of the populated centers are located along that arch. In Popasna and in Pikuzy village OSCE monitors registered heavily damaged houses. The damages were caused by 120-mm mortar rounds, Hug explained.