Donetsk, May 24 – DAN. OSCE SMM's long-range UAVs were jammed during 75 pc of their missions over the last two months, the SMM press and public information department head Dragana Nikolic-Solomon told DAN.
"During the past two months, SMM's long-range unmanned aerial vehicles were subjected to jamming on 75pc of their missions," she said.
On May 17, an UAV of the mission on an announced flight experienced dual GPS signal interference, assessed as caused by jamming, which continued uninterrupted for the remainder of the flight. The SMM conducted an emergency landing of the UAV; as a result of the impact, the aircraft sustained damage to its tailfin and rear fuselage.
DPR revealed that the Ukrainian side was responsible for the crash.
Long-range UAV flights have been suspended pending a technical assessment.
"Such incidents impede Mission's effective monitoring and reporting on security situation in accordance with its mandate."
Employing combat aviation and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) in a 30 km wide zone along the line of contact is banned under Article 7 of Minsk Memorandum, with the sole exception of OSCE SMM UAVs.
With a range of over 160 km, the SMM’s long-range UAVs operate over Donbass equally on both sides of the contact line, including at night when mobile ground patrolling is restricted. *ot