News and press releases

SKOPJE, 31 October – The 2023 OSCE Chairpersonship of North Macedonia hosted the OSCE Chairpersonship Regional Conference on Combating Corruption, Money Laundering, and Facilitating Asset Recovery Efforts in South-Eastern Europe today. The conference was organized in cooperation and with the support of the OSCE Transnational Threats Department and the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities.

Batken, 30 October 2023 – The city of Batken played host to a Forum on "Women's Participation: A Pillar for Peace and Stability", which holds particular significance as an integral component of Kyrgyzstan's National Action Plan for the realization of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 within the 2022-2024 timeframe. Aligned with strategic imperatives in the realm of "Governance, Rule of Law, and Peacebuilding," this Forum emerged as a platform for in-depth examination, identification of shared challenges, and prioritization of endeavors dedicated to advancing the global "Women, Peace, Security" agenda.

On 27 October 2023, nineteen mine action specialists and practitioners (18 men, 1 woman) from the military, law enforcement, security services, and humanitarian agencies of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Serbia completed a three-week regional Explosive Ordnance Disposal course (EOD Level 2) at the Regional Explosive Hazards Training Centre of Tajikistan’s Ministry of Defence in Chimteppa.

Issyk-Kul, 23-26 October- The Migration Council under the Speaker of the Kyrgyz Republic, with the support of the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek, organized a four-day Youth Forum on Combating Human Trafficking in Issyk-Kul, Kyrgyzstan. The event gathered 30 young leaders from across the country selected through a competitive essay contest on the topic "How I Understand Human Trafficking?".

THE HAGUE, 24 October 2023 – The institution of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) marked its 30th anniversary today with a high-level conference at the Peace Palace in The Hague. At the event, High Commissioner Kairat Abdrakhmanov also presented new recommendations on the effective participation of national minorities in social and economic life.

On 23 October, in Tashkent, the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan (PCUz) – together with the National Human Rights Centre, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and its Regional Office for Central Asia, the United Nations Development Programme in Uzbekistan and the Office in Uzbekistan of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation – organized an International Forum titled: "Youth Rights: Possibilities and Mechanisms of Protection". The Forum commemorates the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 30th anniversary of the Vienna World Conference on Human Rights.

VIENNA, 23 October 2023 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Teresa Ribeiro, concluded a two-day official visit to London. During her visit, she engaged in a series of productive meetings with various stakeholders, including Sir John Whittingdale, Minister of State for the Department for Culture, Media, and Sport, Lord Christopher Bellamy KC, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Ministry of Justice, Christian Rogg, Director for Development and Open Societies, and members of Parliament, including Vice Chairs of All-Party Parliamentary Groups on Media Freedom issues. The primary focus of these discussions was to address both current and emerging challenges to media freedom across the OSCE region, including discussions on the situation in the United Kingdom.