Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has engaged in recent talks with the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe on supporting the return of the mandate for the Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine.

The UK has long been a strong supporter of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe's (OSCE) Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine - politically, financially and through providing a large number of qualified personnel, including one of the Deputy Chief Monitors of the Mission. The UK Government condemned Russia's decision in March to block the renewal of the mission's mandate, which will lead to its full closure by 31 October 2022. As renewing the mandate requires consensus from all 57 participating OSCE States, including Russia, there is unfortunately no prospect of doing so under the current circumstances.