The Polish Medical Team, made up of six groups and coordinated by the Government Centre for Security, will provide vaccinations in the SMM most important and populous locations. These include Kyiv, Kharkiv, Kramatorsk, Sievierodonetsk, Dnipro, Mariupol, Odessa, and Lviv. As requested by the OSCE, Poland plans to vaccinate up to 1,500 people.

The SMM to Ukraine is the OSCE’s largest mission. It ensures the only permanent international presence in the region that has been affected by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict which broke out in 2014. In line with its mandate, the SMM is tasked with monitoring and reporting on the security situation, as well as facilitating dialogue among all parties to the conflict.

Poland invariably supports the SMM activities, both financially and politically. Strengthening the mission’s potential will be a crucial task for our country when it takes over the OSCE chairmanship in 2022. Due to the pandemic, the mission’s work is subject to numerous restrictions. By launching the initiative to vaccinate the SMM staff, Poland – as the Organisation’s future Chair – contributes to supporting the mission’s full operability.

 

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Press Office

Photo: Michał Giergoń / Embassy of Poland in Kiev