OSCE Chair-in-Office and Secretary General demand urgent action to release the three OSCE officials held in Donetsk and Luhansk for 2 years

VALLETTA/VIENNA, 18 April – This week marks two years since three OSCE officials were unjustly detained in Luhansk and Donetsk. The OSCE Chair-in-Office, Minister for Foreign and European Affairs and Trade of Malta Ian Borg, and OSCE Secretary General, Helga Maria Schmid, reiterated the demand for their immediate release and urged all members of the international community to amplify this message.

“The detention of our dedicated colleagues while performing their official duties, as mandated by all 57 participating States, has been nothing less than a flagrant injustice and a violation of their human rights,” Chair-in-Office Borg said.

“Our position is clear: our colleagues must be freed. They must be treated humanely and with dignity. They must have access to medical care. They must be able to get in contact with their families and loved ones, and, most importantly, they must be released immediately,” he emphasized.

“These days, our hearts and thoughts are with our detained colleagues and their families as they continue to endure unspeakable anguish and pain for over two years now. We are also extremely concerned about their wellbeing, as this unjust detention in harsh conditions has had a severe impact on their health,” Secretary General Schmid said.

“I would like to call on participating States to join us in our relentless efforts to secure the release of our detained colleagues and express my deep gratitude to all who have already offered their support. We will continue to do all we can and more, publicly and privately, and we will not stop until our detained colleagues are freed,” Schmid said.

Background information

Three OSCE officials – Vadym Golda, Maxim Petrov and Dmytro Shabanov – were detained in April 2022 in Donetsk and Luhansk, where they had been performing their official duties as mandated by all 57 participating States.

In September 2022, Maxim Petrov and Dmytro Shabanov were “sentenced” to 13 years in prison as a result of so-called “legal proceedings”.  The so-called “legal proceedings” concerning Vadym Golda are ongoing.

In addition to the continued efforts of OSCE Chair-in-Office Borg and OSCE Secretary General Schmid, both publicly and in private, the OSCE remains in close contact with relevant stakeholders, including other international organizations, to facilitate the release of detained OSCE officials. The OSCE also continues to support the detainees’ families during this difficult time.