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OSCE delegation to Ukraine gets under shelling

On July 25, Toni Frisch arrived on a two-day visit to the self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR) to analyse the humanitarian situation there

MOSCOW, July 26. /TASS/. A delegation of the Organisation for Security and Co-Operation in Europe (OSCE) led by coordinator of the subgroup on humanitarian issues of the Contact Group on settlement of the situation in Donbass Toni Frisch got under a shelling by the Ukrainian military near the town of Schastye, a well-informed source told the LuhanskInformCentre on Sunday.

"As the Ukrainian military stopped the fire, Frisch made the decision to return to Luhansk," the source said.

On July 25, Toni Frisch arrived on a two-day visit to the self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR) to analyse the humanitarian situation there. Besides, he planned to inspect the destroyed water-supply system in Luhansk and to see other towns in the republic.

The ceasefire regime in Donbass was announced officially on February 15.

Regular talks of the participants in the Trilateral Contact Group on the east Ukrainian settlement comprising representatives of Russia, Ukraine and the Organisation for Security and Co-Operation in Europe (OSCE) were held in the Belarusian capital city of Minsk on February 10-12. Talks of the Normandy Four (Russia, Germany, France, and Ukraine) leaders on the Ukrainian issue also ended February 12 in Minsk.

A 13-point Package of Measures on implementation of the September 2014 Minsk agreements was adopted at the February talks.

The package in particular included an agreement on cessation of fire from February 15, withdrawal of heavy armaments, as well as measures on long-term political settlement of the situation in Ukraine, including enforcement of a special self-rule status for certain districts of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions. The ceasefire has been repeatedly violated since.

On Saturday, July 18, DPR and LPR announced withdrawing from the line of engagement of tanks and armoured vehicles equipped with guns of under 100mm calibre to the distance of at least 3 kilometres. Within July 19, DPR withdrew 41 tanks and 84 infantry fighting vehicles. LPR as of 08:00 p.m. on July 19 finalised withdrawal of all the weapons of under 100mm calibre from the line of engagement with the exception for the area near the settlement of Schastye.

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