The United States deeply regrets the decision by the Russian Federation to block consensus to extend the mandate of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM). The SMM provided invaluable reporting to OSCE participating States and the international community on the situation in eastern Ukraine, including ceasefire violations and the effect of the fighting on the people in the region. We continue to call on the Russian Federation to allow the SMM mandate to be extended, cease its ongoing assault on Ukraine, and contribute to a peaceful resolution to the conflict.