VIENNA, October 20 (RIA Novosti) – The Permanent Council of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) has proposed to consider extending the monitoring of Russian checkpoints on the border with Ukraine, Russia's OSCE envoy Andrei Kelin told RIA Novosti Monday.
"The issue will be discussed on Wednesday. Right now a short meeting of the Permanent Council is being planned. But not all countries have confirmed their readiness for the moment to support the draft proposal," Kelin said, noting that some countries are trying to insist not only on the extension but also on the expansion of the monitoring mission's mandate.
"Such attempts continue to take place. Russia's position remains unchanged. We have strict control over all the checkpoints on our side of the border [with Ukraine] and do not see the necessity of expanding the mission," Kelin stressed.
The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine was deployed in late March following a request to the OSCE by Ukraine's government and a consensus agreement by all 57 OSCE participating States. The monitors are to contribute to reducing tensions and fostering peace, stability and security in Ukraine.
In July, Russia agreed to international monitoring of its Gukovo and Donetsk checkpoints on the Russian-Ukrainian border. Moscow said the OSCE Mission needed to continue its work in Ukraine to keep a record of what was actually happening in the country's conflict areas.
Last week, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and German chancellor Agela Merkel called for expanding the OSCE monitoring mission on the Russian-Ukrainian border.
