OSCE Chair Calls for Temporary Truce in Debaltseve to Evacuate Civilians

Serbia’s Foreign Minister and current OSCE Chairman Ivica Dacic urged 'all actors in and around the Debaltseve area' in eastern Ukraine to establish a local temporary truce to allow for the urgent evacuation of civilians from the conflict zone.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Serbia’s Foreign Minister and current Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Chairman Ivica Dacic has called for a temporary truce in the Debaltseve region in eastern Ukraine to enable the evacuation of civilians.

In a statement, issued by the OSCE overnight into Wednesday, Dacic called on “all actors in and around the Debaltseve area to establish a local temporary truce for a minimum of three days, taking immediate effect."

The truce would be facilitated and supported by the OSCE's Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine and allow for the urgent evacuation of civilians from the conflict zone, Dacic added.

The OSCE chair also called for an immediate resumption of consultations to ensure a sustainable ceasefire in Ukraine.

The town of Debaltseve in Ukraine’s Donetsk region has been at the forefront of increased clashes between Kiev-led forces and local pro-independence militia in recent days.

Tensions have been on the rise in East Ukraine in the first weeks of 2015. On Tuesday, the United Nations' human rights chief said that 224 civilians had been killed in the conflict in three weeks leading up to February 1, while 545 had been wounded.

Since Kiev launched a military operation against independence supporters in eastern Ukraine in April, more than 5,300 people have been killed and 12,200 have been wounded, according to the latest UN estimates.