Part of OSCE monitors pulled out of Ukraine due to security situation deterioration

OSCE SMM Photo by US State Department

US and UK observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, OSCE, are being withdrawn from Ukraine.

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“In line with our duty of care responsibilities, we have taken the decision to withdraw our UK secondees to the OSCE SMM. We will keep this under close review. We take the safety of our staff extremely seriously,” a spokesperson for the UK Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office told CNN.

US also started to withdraw its SOCE employees by car from occupied Donetsk, as Reuters reported with the reference to the witnesses.

OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine was deployed on 21 March 2014.

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The United States and its allies have urged their citizens to leave Ukraine right away to avoid an invasion, including a possible air assault, warning an attack could occur at any time. Russia has accused Western nations of spreading lies.

All these events took place amid the US has warned of the “very distinct possibility” of a Russian invasion of Ukraine in the next few days, potentially involving an overwhelming attack on Kyiv, and told all remaining Americans to leave the country in the next 48 hours. New US intelligence suggests Russia could intend to attack Ukraine before the end of the Olympics (February 20). The White House believes air attacks are likely first.

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The Israeli Foreign Ministry has announced that it is withdrawing the families of its diplomats from Ukraine. At the same time, Latvia, Norway, Japan, South Korea, Montenegro, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States called on their citizens to “leave Ukraine immediately.”

Russian President Putin gave no indication in a phone call with his French counterpart Macron that he was preparing to invade Ukraine, a French presidency official said on February 12.

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Heads of the Ukrainian parliament and Government urged Ukrainians to avoid panic and to trust the Armed Forces of Ukraine and diplomats.