The head of the DPR Denis Pushylin assessed the situation with the kidnapping of LPR representative representative to the Joint Centre for Control and Coordination of the Ceasefire Regime (JCCC) Andrei Kosyak, saying that OSCE inaction poses an enormous threat to security in Donbass
“The OSCE SMM is not even embarrassed by the fact that the already very fragile trust in the authority and integrity of this organization on the part of the residents of Donbas has now been significantly undermined. The situation inevitably creates a risk of further escalation of Kiev’s actions and a huge threat in many aspects: in particular, the possibility of carrying out repair and reconstruction work on the territory of critical infrastructure facilities”, – Pushylin said.
According to the DPR leader, the arguments of the OSCE representatives are irrelevant in the conditions of the armed conflict. The Minsk agreements, as well as the mandate of the OSCE SMM, clearly prescribe the main function of the Mission: monitoring and verification of violations of the agreements reached, and on the principles of impartiality and impartiality.
“However, when a blatant act of aggression occurs – the kidnapping of a person with inviolable observer status – the OSCE says that if its staff were not personally present at the incident, it cannot be reported and can therefore pretend that nothing happened. This is an absolutely unacceptable position”, – Pushylin said.
Summing up, he stressed that the OSCE should take an active and tough stance on the situation as soon as possible and use all available tools to influence Kyiv for the immediate return of Kosyak and to prevent similar incidents in the future.