Ukraine proposes 1,500 OSCE police force in Donbas

More details have
emerged of the new peace plan for Donbas being proposed by Ukrainian leaders,
as reported on Nov. 13 by the Interfax-Ukraine news agency, which cited an
anonymous source close to the talks between the advisers of the Normandy Four
leaders. The plan’s foundation is based on regaining Ukrainian control of the
Russian border in the occupied territories and their full demilitarization,
before local elections are held. New details involve a specialized subgroup of
up to 1,500 OSCE police officers overseeing this process, which will be
developed by a specialized subgroup in the Trilateral Contact Group. The plan
also calls for a transitional judicial system with conditions for prosecution
and amnesty. It also calls for Russian President Putin to cancel his decree
simplifying the procedure for Donbas residents to gain Russian citizenship. It
calls for returning captured property to Ukrainian owners.

Ukraine renewed on
Nov. 10 the operation of all seven of its border crossings along the Donbas separation
line, the State Border Service reported on Nov. 13. They are the Stanytsia
Luhanska and Shchastia in the Luhansk region, and Novotroyitske, Zolote,
Hnutove, Mariyinka and Mayorske in the Donetsk region. Yet the Russian-backed
fighters have allowed movement at only the Stanytsia Luhanska and Novotroyitske
crossings last week, the report said. At Novotroyitske, 14 trucks with the Red
Cross and 10 vehicles from the United Nations were able to cross.

Zenon Zawada: We
don’t see the Russians as interested in Ukraine’s new peace plan in Donbas, for
reasons that include pro-Russian political forces gaining in popularity, recent
victories in attacking Ukraine’s anti-corruption infrastructure, and a refusal
for anything less than full amnesty for its operatives, among others. We also
believe the OSCE will hesitate to put its police officers in the line of fire.
So we don’t expect much success with the Zelensky administration’s latest
attempt at peace in Donbas.