MOSCOW, July 29 (RIA Novosti) – Moscow demands that Kiev immediately stop its cross-border fire and ensure the safety of international monitors being deployed on the Russian-Ukrainian border, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.
The ministry said that on July 29 Russia’s Gukovo crossing point on the border with Ukraine was deliberately targeted by gunfire and grenade launcher attacks from Ukraine.
"Apparently, Kiev fears the deployment of an OSCE [Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe] monitoring mission at the Gukovo crossing," the statement said. "We demand that the Kiev authorities stop [cross-border] shelling of the Russian Federation’s sovereign territory and ensure safety of international observers."
Last week, the OSCE Permanent Council decided to send 16 observers to Donetsk and Gukovo checkpoints on Russian-Ukrainian border. The mission is due to work for three months and is tasked with monitoring and reporting on the checkpoints' operations and movement across the border.
Earlier this month, Moscow invited OSCE observers to assess the situation on the Russian-Ukrainian border, which has been hit multiple times by Ukrainian artillery.
On July 13, shells exploded in the Russian city of Donetsk in Rostov Region, killing one civilian and injuring two more.
The Russian Foreign Ministry condemned the shelling of the Russian territory, urged Kiev to stop the attacks immediately and warned that these provocations might have irreversible consequences.
