News and press releases

COPENHAGEN, 26 February 2021 – Meeting virtually today, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s committees on economic and environmental affairs and human rights and democracy discussed the impacts of COVID-19, as well as other pertinent issues. It was the first time that the two committees have met – albeit in an online format – since the coronavirus outbreak last year. The meetings featured speeches by committee leaders, presentations by high-level OSCE officials, and wide-ranging debates with the participation of dozens of parliamentarians from North America, Europe and Central Asia.

VIENNA, 23 February 2021 – Opportunities for transboundary co-operation to address climate-related security risks in South-Eastern Europe were virtually presented today to an audience of over 100 participants at the Regional Consultation Process on Climate Change and Security in South-Eastern Europe. The event was the result of a series of three interactive regional consultation workshops and three surveys on climate change and security, organized by the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities and the Berlin-based think tank adelphi...

Kamensk-Shakhtinskiy, Russian Federation. The Observer Mission (OM) continues to operate 24/7 at both Border Crossing Points (BCPs). The overall number of border crossings by persons decreased at both BCPs compared to the previous week.

The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) organized an online round table discussion on the harassment of women in the public sphere on 23 February 2021...

COPENHAGEN, 19 February 2021 – Taking stock of migratory developments in the OSCE region over the last several months, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Ad Hoc Committee on Migration met today and discussed how the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the precarious conditions in which refugees and asylum seekers find themselves. The meeting also focused on developing synergies between the OSCE’s executive structures and OSCE parliamentarians in the area of combating trafficking in human beings along migration routes.

On 19 February 2021, the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan organized a public presentation of the Constitution and the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On the rights of persons with disabilities” published in Braille, as well as the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: A Training Guide (Professional Training Series), published in the state language. The National Human Rights Centre and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR) co-organized the event.

CHISINAU, 18 February 2021 — OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs Ann Linde concluded an official visit to the Republic of Moldova on 17 February.