NEW YORK, 15 March 2022, (TON): The work of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission in the future will be determined based on the situation on the ground.

Zbigniew Rau, the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Poland chairing the OSCE, stated this on Monday at a briefing in the UN Security Council.

He said “the changing situation on the ground will likely determine the scope and nature of the future work of the Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine.”

Recognizing the experience gained over the eight years of the mission, I will work with OSCE structures and Member States to use the potential of the mission in the future. I hope that the staff of the mission, as well as the OSCE Project Coordinator in Ukraine, can continue their important mission.

Rau reiterated that the door for diplomacy on the situation around Ukraine remains open, but expressed the opinion that the possibility of a settlement depends on Russia’s willingness to work in this direction, and a sustainable solution must respect the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Ukraine in the international recognized boundaries.