Donetsk, Oct 19 – DAN. Kiev must stop sabotaging the Additional Measures to Strengthen Ceasefire in Donbass, said DPR Foreign Minister Natalia Nikonorova.

"The rapid increase in the number of provocations jeopardizes the efforts to restore peace undertaken by representatives of the Republic at the Minsk talks, and indicates a deliberate escalation of the conflict on the Ukrainian side, Nikonorova said in a statement made available to DAN. “Therefore, we urge the Ukrainian negotiators to stop sabotaging the work on the update of Additional measures and to make effort to agree on it promptly and abide by it.”

According to Nikonorova, over the past week, Ukrainian armed formations carried out numerous attacks with grenade launchers, small arms and mortars banned by the Minsk agreements. In particular, members of the JCCC and a repair brigade of the Donetsk Railways came under fire.

“The current situation shows the need to agree as soon as possible within the Contact Group on a new package of additional measures to strengthen and control the ceasefire. At the same time, the representatives of Ukraine need to realize that one of the most important measures is the effective functioning of the coordination mechanism with the participation of the JCCC as the only way to control the implementation of these measures,” she said.

Earlier Donetsk had proposed to develop a consolidated draft project of the sides' propositions concerning the coordination mechanism.

Kiev derailed a scheduled joint inspection in Shumy on September 10, as it was aimed at clarifying the situation with engineer works of the Ukrainian army. Donetsk has repeatedly pointed out the fact that the adversary installed and advanced its fortifications towards the Seversky Donetsk – Donbass water duct arch to secure positions under it.

The Additional Measures to Strengthen the Ceasefire were signed at the Contact Group meeting on July 22 to reinforce and control the indefinite ceasefire in effect since July 21, 2019, the latest in the series of more than 20 reconfirmation and announcements of the “silence regime”. The package came into effect on July 27. *ot