After two months of a relatively calm situation, tensions as well as the number of ceasefire violations increased. Particularly, fighting spiked since mid-November in Donetsk Region whereas the security situation remains relatively calm in Luhansk Region.
Following the outbreak of polio in south-western Ukraine in the beginning of September, the first vaccination round has been completed. The EU will support the further vaccination campaign through its humanitarian partners WHO and UNICEF.
The humanitarian space continues to shrink as demonstrated by a limited number of humanitarian aid organisations allowed to operate in the non-government controlled areas. Although some organisations were recently permitted to resume activities, they are not able to cover all the unaddressed needs. At the onset of harsh winter conditions, with temperatures currently dropping below zero, this hampers the swift delivery of humanitarian assistance and will have a very negative humanitarian impact on the civilian population in these areas.