The German Foreign Ministry did not deny the content of the report but underlined that no decision has been taken yet on deploying German drones and soldiers in Ukraine in support of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, or OSCE.
“The German federal government, together with the French government, is conducting talks with the OSCE on ways to effectively support the organization in performing the assigned tasks,” the Foreign Ministry said in a written statement.
“For the moment these are only exploratory talks. Nothing has been decided. Difficult legal and political issues have to be resolved before a possible decision,” the ministry said.
The Bild newspaper reported on Saturday that German armed forces (Bundeswehr) had already started preparations for a drone mission in eastern Ukraine to support the OSCE in monitoring the cease-fire and crossings in Ukraine-Russia border.
The daily reported that initial preparations are made for sending up to 200 soldiers, 150 of them for drone missions and 50 paratroopers to provide security. According to an internal report of the German Defense Ministry, the possible deployment of armed German soldiers in the OSCE mission requires a mandate from the Parliament.
German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen told the Bild daily that a joint report by German and French military officials would be handed over to OSCE officials in the coming days.
A group of German and French soldiers visited Ukraine last month to study feasibility of deploying drones in Ukraine’s border region, days after Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko authorized the use of drones by the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to monitor the ceasefire.
“Our common goal is the stabilization of the situation in eastern Ukraine, leading to a peace process,” von der Leyen stressed.
The German government has carried out extensive diplomatic efforts in the past few months to defuse tensions in the region and to convince both parties to agree to a cease-fire.
The Ukrainian government and pro-Russian separatist leaders signed a cease-fire agreement in September 5 after negotiations in the Belarusian capital of Minsk, with hopes of ending the five-month conflict.
However, separatists have organized frequent attacks to take over Donetsk Airport, prompting concerns that the fragile truce could break down.
Unrest in eastern Ukraine has torn the region apart since April, when Kiev launched military operations in the provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk to restore government control after separatists had declared independence in the region.
http://www.aa.com.tr/en/news/399712--german-soldiers-considered-to-monitor-cease-fire-in-ukraine
4/10/14
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Related:
Germany considers deploying drones in Ukraine. (capable of providing real-time imagery and target data)
German Defense Ministry sent a team of 14 German military men to Ukraine to observe, in cooperation with French experts, the use of Austrian drones in the eastern part of the country. It goes about the use of unarmed drones for intelligence purposes. The team will also analyze collected information, The Local said....
Bald deutsche Drohnen in der Ukraine...
La Germania pronta ad inviare in Ucraina 200 paracadutisti...
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Germany considers sending troops to E. Ukraine – report...
ReplyDeleteBerlin is mulling sending troops to monitor the shaky ceasefire between Kiev forces and local militia in eastern Ukraine, a German government source told Reuters.
The source told the agency that a German troop deployment would depend on the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which could move to send in troops to monitor the ceasefire it helped broker on September 5 in Minsk, Belarus.
If such a political decision were made, the number of troops sent by Germany would depend on the security situation in Ukraine and conditions set by the OSCE, the source said.
German newspaper Bild, however, said that 200 soldiers were planned for the mission. Around 150 would help monitor the crisis area with drones, and an additional 50 would provide security.
Last month, France and Germany offered to send drones to help bolster OSCE monitoring of the ceasefire in Ukraine’s troubled east.
The daily said the mission was in reaction to a Franco-German fact-finding mission in mid-September, which determined that the ceasefire could only be effectively monitored if boots on the ground provided security for monitoring staff.
A spokesman for the German Foreign Ministry told Reuters that Berlin and Paris are hammering out a plan to support the OSCE mission, but were only in the exploratory phase................http://rt.com/news/193204-germany-troops-east-ukraine/
4/10/14
Drones for OSCE Special Monitoring Mission arrive in Ukraine...
ReplyDeleteDrones for the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission have just arrived in Ukraine, spokesman Michael Bociurkiw said on Monday.
Drones have been delivered from Austria. Now they are undergoing customs clearance, Bociurkiw said, adding that civilian specialists would work with them.
Drones will be used in several weeks. Now there is no strict schedule for starting their use, he told TASS.
Andrei Lysenko, head of the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Committee, said earlier that the OSCE mission would soon get drones for monitoring purposes.
“This will increase the effectiveness of the mission’s work immensely,” he said.
The OSCE Secretariat earlier said that the drones would be used to monitor the Ukrainian-Russian border and in compliance with the ceasefire agreement reached in Minsk on September 5.
http://en.itar-tass.com/world/752871
6/10/14
OSCE rejects German military assistance in Ukraine...
ReplyDeleteThe Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) will not agree to Germany’s offer to send to Ukraine drones and the military to secure the Organisation’s inspectors, Deutsche Welle reported on Sunday.
We are happy for any suggestion from our member countries. However, involvement of the military contradicts the mandate of our mission in Ukraine, OSCE said.
On October 10, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said Germany notified the OSCE it was ready to send drones and military escort to Ukraine. Steinmeier said that an “armed escort” for the teams operating the unmanned aircraft would be required if the mission were to go ahead, saying both Berlin and Paris had made this clear when suggesting the deployment to the OSCE.
Use of drones in eastern Ukraine
Two weeks earlier, Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko allowed the OSCE monitors to use drones in the east of the country.
Poroshenko and OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Didier Burkhalter also agreed to increase the number of monitors and provide them with better technical means for monitoring and verification..........http://en.itar-tass.com/world/755205
19/10/14