News and press releases

An online seminar on improving the investment climate by developing public-private partnerships (PPPs) was organized by the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat on 16 and 17 December 2021.

VIENNA, 15 December 2021 – Building trust, improving military transparency, countering the illicit trafficking of small arms and light weapons, and improving the participation of women in the armed forces were at the centre of Austria’s Chairpersonship of the OSCE Forum for Security Co-operation (FSC). This was the message emphasized by Dieter Kandlhofer, Secretary General of the Austrian Ministry of Defence, at the last meeting held under the Austrian FSC Chair.

STOCKHOLM/VIENNA, 12 December 2021 – OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs Ann Linde and OSCE Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid made the following statement regarding the decision taken on Friday in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) by the Republika Srpska National Assembly (RSNA) to take further steps in the direction of unilateral withdrawal from transfer agreements from the entities to the State.

WASHINGTON/MOSCOW/PARIS, 7 December 2021- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov, and French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian, representing the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair countries, express support for the resumption of direct dialogue between Armenia and Azerbaijan under the auspices of the Minsk Group Co-Chairs.  The Co-Chair countries call on the sides to continue the dialogue between the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan begun at meetings held in New York in September and Paris in November, as well as to continue contacts at the leadership level to promote a lasting and sustainable peace in the region.   

The OSCE has played a vital role in preventing conflict and responding to crises over the last decade, but further steps must be taken to strengthen and make better use of the OSCE’s unique toolbox in relation to early warning, early action, dialogue facilitation, mediation support and post-conflict rehabilitation.

STOCKHOLM, 3 December 2021 – For the first time, the OSCE participating States have agreed on how to work together to deal with the challenges caused by climate change.

By increasing democratic civilian control, respecting the rule of law, upholding human rights and integrating a real role for women, good security sector governance helps build the population’s trust and provides stability by significantly contributing to conflict prevention.