Ukraine

France and Germany have welcomed Kyiv's opening of new crossing points along the contact line with separatist territory in Ukraine's east, and have called on separatist authorities and their ally Russia to respond in kind by opening crossing points to separatist-controlled areas.

Voters across Ukraine are casting ballots in local elections being held under a new Electoral Code that decentralizes power from Kyiv to local governing bodies. 

[…] This event is just one of the many EUAM initiatives to reach out to civil society and facilitate exchanges about various security and safety concerns.

Friday, 25 September, the European Union Advisory Mission for Civilian Security Sector Reform (EUAM Ukraine) inaugurated its new Field Office in Mariupol. The inauguration marks the formation of the fourth EUAM regional presence in Ukraine since the Mission was established in December 2014.

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) today opened an election observation mission (EOM) for the 25 October local elections in Ukraine, … . The mission is led by Ingibjörg Sólrún Gisladóttir and consists of a core team of 15 experts based in Kyiv and 66 long-term observers, … . ODIHR also plans to request OSCE participating States to send 600 short-term observers, … .

UN officials say a cease-fire that took effect in July in eastern Ukraine appears to be holding and has resulted in a significant drop in civilian casualties.

Years of conflict have exacerbated the economic woes of Donbas, once an industrial powerhouse. Authorities in Kyiv should take steps now to aid pensioners and encourage small trade while also planning ahead for the region’s eventual reintegration with the rest of the country.

A car used by the team of an investigative journalist whose reports had raised the hackles of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was burned near Kyiv, following allegations of wiretapping of the journalist’s home.

Ceasefires in Ukraine's Donbas repeatedly fray because no side is fully invested in peace. Until the sides can agree on a long-term political solution, they should focus on protecting civilians through carefully targeted sectoral disengagements. If this facilitates peacemaking, so much the better.

Ukraine's army has accused pro-Russian separatists of firing weapons shortly after a ceasefire between the two sides came into force. The rebels say they are abiding by the truce, calling Kyiv's claims a "provocation."