Ukraine asks OSCE to increase number of observers in Donbas by 1.5 thousand - Arestovych

Ukraine, Russia and the OSCE have shaped an activities plan that implements the previously reached agreements in the TCG. This was stated by adviser to the delegation on information policy in the Trilateral Contact Group, military correspondent and blogger Olekiy Arestovych in a commentary to Hromadske Radio.

According to him, all three parties - Ukraine, Russia and the OSCE - decided that it was necessary to shape a new activities plan that would implement the previously reached agreements.

"The Russians offered theirs and we offered ours - this is our own Ukrainian position. The OSCE is going to consider the documents and give its point of view by November 10", - Arestovych says.

He added that the Ukrainian delegation did not officially comment on Russia's proposals, because Russia had not provided official documents, and the information that "they are giving to the media is not commented on at the official level".

"We offer them a free economic zone, and they ask for a special order of self-government in CADO and CALO until 2050 and the withdrawal of troops, but there are different approaches to this all. For example, according to some signs, they demand that the Ukrainian Armed Forces cannot be present on their territory, which is completely unacceptable for us, because this is the sovereign territory of Ukraine. They give instructions to the President of Ukraine or the Verkhovna Rada to amend the legislation, and this is also unacceptable. That is why we ask the OSCE to increase the number of observers by 1500 more than there is", - Arestovych adds.

According to the adviser to the delegation, the OSCE observers should have access to any part of the territory of Ukraine in the occupied Donbas and, moreover, they are entrusted with a special mission on the state border, the return of the border under Ukraine's control.

As previously reported, Kravchuk told that the "Plan of joint steps" prepared by the Ukrainian side for the Trilateral Contact Group contained a proposal to completely end the conflict and demilitarize certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts in early 2021 and create all the necessary conditions for holding local elections there on March 31, 2021. Kravchuk also noted that the Ukrainian side would very much like the next meeting of leaders of the Normandy format states to take place before the end of 2020.