News and press releases

The OSCE-supported eleventh meeting of the Chu-Talas Water Basin Council took place on 28 July in Taraz, southern Kazakhstan...

The OSCE Project Co-ordinator on 15 July 2016 launched the first distance course in Ukraine on the application of the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR)...

Ways to increase the sustainability of social businesses by using social media marketing tools were discussed at a training session organized in Kyiv on 26 July 2016 by the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine...

The OSCE Office in Tajikistan on 24 July 2016 organized the first regional forum for promoting women’s political participation in Khujand, with the aim of increasing community outreach, engaging women leaders in the region and supporting women’s empowerment in political and public life...

Some 35 law-enforcement officers and social workers took part in the first in a series of five training seminars on anti-trafficking practices and procedures on 22 July 2016 in Kostanay with other workshops to be conducted in Almaty, Astana, Karaganda and Shymkent later this year...

The SMM recorded a similarly high number of ceasefire violations in Donetsk region compared with the previous reporting period, with violence focused in the Avdiivka-Yasynuvata area, northern Donetsk city and Horlivka. In Luhansk region, the SMM recorded an increase in the total number of recorded ceasefire violations, all of which occurred around Stanytsia Luhanska bridge, but noted a decrease in the total number of explosions. The SMM followed up on reports of shelling and injuries to civilians in Popasna, Avdiivka and Yasynuvata, and of damage to power lines leading to a water filtration station. It monitored the withdrawal of weapons. The Mission faced a restriction while monitoring a border area not controlled by the Government; its freedom of movement was restricted on four additional occasions, three of which were in areas outside government control.* In Kyiv, the SMM followed up on an explosion in a vehicle that led to the death of a journalist and monitored a demonstration against increases in utility rates...

The need for a risk management system for Tajikistan’s Customs Service and simpler procedures for transparency and accountability are key recommendations of an integrity assessment of the Customs Code, presented to international donors, private and international companies and NGOs by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan on 18 July 2016...