News and press releases

VIENNA, 3 February 2016 – Improving inland transport connectivity between Europe and Asia was the focus of a two-day OSCE-supported seminar that ended today in Vienna. The event gathered transport officials, representatives of the private sector and academia, and experts from Germany, Poland, the Russian Federation, Turkmenistan, Turkey and Iran, as well as representatives of various specialized inter-governmental transport organizations from across the region...

STRASBOURG, 3 February 2016 – Special Representative for the German Chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Gernot Erler visited the Council of Europe in Strasbourg today to present the OSCE Chairmanship’s programme for 2016.

KYIV, 3 February 2016 – The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) received 20 armoured vehicles donated by the European Union (EU) today during an official handover ceremony held outside the SMM’s head office in Kyiv. The EU’s donation is part of its support to the OSCE in working towards the stabilization and normalization of the situation in Ukraine...

PRAGUE, 3 February 2016 – The leadership of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions visited the Czech Republic on 1 and 2 February to consider the country’s role in responding to the crisis of migrants and refugees currently affecting the OSCE area...

The SMM observed continued ceasefire violations in the wider Horlivka area, but a lower number of ceasefire violations in areas at and around Donetsk airport compared to the two previous days. It continued to visit heavy weapons holding areas and permanent storage sites. In violation of the Mission’s mandate and the Package of Measures, unidentified armed men restricted the Mission’s freedom of movement, especially in parts of Luhansk region not controlled by the Government*. The SMM continued to facilitate and monitor repair work on critical infrastructure along the contact line. In Kharkiv, the Mission followed up on media reports about a bomb threat. It monitored a protest in Ivano-Frankivsk and one rally in Kyiv...

VILNIUS, 2 February 2016 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today discussed media freedom issues with Lithuania’s Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius as part of a visit to Vilnius. She expressed her gratitude for the strong support her mandate has received from the country’s government over the past six years...

The SMM observed a large number of ceasefire violations in Donetsk region. It continued to visit heavy weapons holding areas and permanent storage sites. The Mission encountered freedom-of-movement restrictions, mostly in areas not controlled by the Government. It continued to facilitate and monitor repair work on critical infrastructure along the contact line. The Mission monitored a protest march in Lviv in which participants called for the release of so-called political prisoners...