REUTERS

"On 14 December, the Ukrainian Armed Forces representative to the Joint Centre for Control and Co-ordination (JCCC) in the JCCC headquarters in government-controlled Soledar (79km north of Donetsk) shared with the SMM a letter from the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation informing Ukraine that the Russian Federation would withdraw its Armed Forces officers from the JCCC," reads the report.

Read alsoAnother provocation in Donbas: Russian JCCC says Ukraine forces "shell" Donetsk filtration stationAs UNIAN reported earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused Ukraine of trying to stop the JCCC activities during his speech at the OSCE Ministerial Council Meeting on December 7, 2017.

"A dangerous situation has developed around the Joint Control and Coordination Centre (JCCC). Ukraine, in particular, President Poroshenko, who spearheaded the creation of such a centre in 2014, is now doing everything to create an unbearable environment for the Russian officers and making unacceptable requirements on them with an eye towards shutting down the centre. The responsibility for this will, of course, lie with the Ukrainian authorities," Lavrov said.

Видео дня

The primary task of the JCCC is to monitor compliance with the Minsk agreements. It consists of representatives of the Ukrainian and Russian sides, as well as the so-called "DPR" and "LPR" (self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics).