In late 2013 protests began in Kyiv as a response to the decision of the then-President of Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovych, to abandon the planned Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement.

[7] The headquarters was located in Kyiv and the mission was headed by the Turkish diplomat Yaşar Halit Çevik who followed Ertuğrul Apakan in this post.

SMM monitoring effectiveness suffers from the presence of mines, unexploded ordinances and the low rate at which they are cleared, and from shelling by artillery and threatening behavior of armed personnel.

[26] The final daily report including mapping of ceasefire violations was made on 23 February 2022, which recorded the observation of 1,420 explosions the previous day.

The report recorded that in the previous year the mission had observed "36,686 explosions, 26,605 projectiles in flight, 491 muzzle flashes, 524 illumination flares, and at least 54,330 bursts and shots".

[27] On 24 February 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Secretary General Helga Schmid announced the temporary evacuation of SMM staff, with a view to resuming work as soon as circumstances on the ground permit.

[30] On 19 September 2022, Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine sentenced two former OSCE staff members to 13 years in prison on charges of treason.

[32] OSCE has on numerous occasions reported presence of Russian electronic warfare equipment in the separatist-controlled areas[33][34][35] including specifically anti-UAV Repellent-1 systems.