DPR informs OSCE SMM about readiness to resume Petrovskoye disengagment on Nov 9 – Yakubov

Donetsk, Nov 7 – DAN. Donetsk People’s Republic militia units are ready to resume the disengagement of troops in the Petrovksoye-Bogdanovka pilot area on November 9, if the Contact Group approves this date, head of the DPR Office at the Joint Centre for Control and Coordination Ruslan Yakubov said on Thursday.

“Today, we notified the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine about the DPR People’s Militia readiness to launch practical measures in the disengagement zone near the Petrovskoye settlement on November 9 following the Contact Group’s decision,” Yakubov said.

On that day, DPR miltiai representatives will fire a white flare to signal readines for disengagement, provided the Contact Group agrees the date. The Contact Group might video conference might take place on November 8, he added.

On November 4, Kiev failed once again the attempt to begin the disengagement of forces and hardware in the Petrovskoye-Bogdanovka area.

The Petrovskoye village is located on the contact line some 40 kilometres south of Donetsk. Bogdanovka-Petrovskoye is one of the three pilot disengagement areas in Donbass, in accordance with the Framework Agreement signed by the Contact Group participants in Minsk in September 2016.  The conflicting parties disengaged back in October 2016, but later on Ukrainian troops returned to their positions. Donetsk has been demanding since March 2018 that Kiev restore parity, but all the attempts have been unavailing so far.*jk