News and press releases

The Trilateral Contact Group of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the OSCE met in Kiev on July 6, 2014.

BERN, 14 July 2014- In telephone conversations with the Ukrainian and the Russian Foreign Ministers today, the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Swiss Foreign Minister; Didier Burkhalter, reiterated the OSCE’s support in various ongoing de-escalation efforts.

The Trilateral Contact Group of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the OSCE met in Kiev on July 15, 2014.

The Trilateral Contact Group of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the OSCE convened in Kiev on July 17, 2014.

Bern, July 17, 2014- Didier Burkhalter, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Swiss Foreign Minister, expressed his sincere condolences to the families of the many victims of the shocking crash of the Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 over Ukrainian territory. He said that the circumstances which led to this tragedy had to be investigated in a thorough and impartial manner and commended Ukraine’s readiness to involve international expertise.

VIENNA, 18 July 2014 – Representatives of the OSCE’s 57 participating States at the Permanent Council today adopted a declaration on the tragic crash of the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in Ukraine...

KYIV, 22 July 2014- The Trilateral Contact Group, consisting of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the OSCE Chairperson-in Office, (President Kuchma, Ambassador Zurabov, Ambassador Tagliavini respectively), met on 22 July 2014 and held another round of video consultations with representatives of separatists operating in eastern Ukraine.

OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier visited Kyiv from 21 to 23 July 2014. He met with the head of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine Ambassador Ertugrul Apakan and his staff to discuss their work in light of recent developments in the east of Ukraine. Zannier, on behalf of the Organization and its participating States, thanked the SMM staff for their hard work and courage displayed in increasingly difficult circumstances...

MINSK, 31 July 2014- The Trilateral Contact Group of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office had a face-to-face meeting in Minsk on July 31, 2014 with representatives of separatist groups from eastern regions of Ukraine...

The SMM monitored a simultaneous release of prisoners in the Donetsk region. The Kharkiv region “has exhausted” its capacity to absorb more internally displaced persons (IDPs), according to the regional social protection department. Protestors in Kyiv demand lustration of government...

KYIV, 2 September 2014- The Trilateral Contact Group of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office had a face-to-face meeting, on 1 September 2014, with representatives of the self-proclaimed entities of Donetsk and Lugansk in eastern regions of Ukraine...

BERN, 5 September 2014- OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Swiss Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter welcomed today’s agreement in Minsk on a ceasefire and on launching a political process to resolve the crisis. Emphasizing the opportunity to finally reverse the logic of escalation, he said that this conflict had caused far too much bloodshed and misery already and urged all sides to implement today’s commitments. Burkhalter also commended the work of the Trilateral Contact Group and thanked his Special Representative Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini for her untiring work...

The SMM observed the simultaneous release of 68 hostages/prisoners in the Donetsk region...

BERN, September 20 2014- Didier Burkhalter, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Swiss Foreign Minister, noted with satisfaction the signing of a Memorandum on 19 September, 2014, outlining the parameters for the implementation of the cease-fire commitments laid down in the Minsk Protocol of 5 September 2014...

KYIV, 21 September, 2014 –We welcome the Memorandum of 19 September 2014 on concrete steps to be taken to de-escalate the situation in eastern Ukraine...

KYIV, 26 September 2014- The Trilateral Contact Group of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office held a video conference on 25 September with representatives of self-proclaimed entities in Donetsk.

KYIV, 4 October 2014- The Trilateral Contact Group of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office held a meeting in Kyiv on 2 October 2014, to discuss further steps towards the implementation of the Peace Plan of the President of Ukraine.

BERN, 27 October 2014- Didier Burkhalter, Swiss Foreign Minister and OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, congratulated Ukrainians for taking part in the early elections of the parliamentary assembly. Taking good note of the preliminary findings of the International Election Observation Mission that these elections marked an important step in Ukraine’s aspirations to consolidate democratic elections in line with its international commitments, he thanked the election observation mission of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR) and the observation delegation of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly as well as other international institutions for their engagement...

Swiss Foreign Minister and OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Didier Burkhalter, reminded all parties that the Minsk Protocol and the Memorandum of September 5 and 19 respectively should continue to serve as the relevant framework and reference point for steps towards de-escalation of the conflict in eastern Ukraine. He noted that some progress was made in the implementation of the arrangements, particularly with regard to cease-fire and its monitoring, efforts towards decentralization and the liberation of detainees, which led to a decrease in violence.

BERN, 22 November 2014- Central Asia plays an important role as a bridge between Asia and Europe, the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Swiss Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter said as he concluded a four-day visit to the Central Asian republics of Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, from 19 to 22 November 2014...

BASEL, Switzerland, 4 December 2014 – It is essential to preserve the OSCE as a platform for inclusive discussions and as an effective responder despite divisions in Europe over the situation in Ukraine, said the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Swiss Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter in his opening address at the 21st OSCE Ministerial Council in Basel...

BASEL, Switzerland, 5 December 2014 – The OSCE proved its value and ability as a forum for dialogue while its key principles were defended, said OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Swiss Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter as the 21st Ministerial Council concluded in Basel today. Burkhalter welcomed decisions on Germany and Austria assuming the OSCE Chairmanships respectively in 2016 and 2017, and lauded decisions to further enhance the fight against terrorism and boost States’ preparedness against the threat of natural disasters...

BERN, 13 December 2014 – OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Swiss Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter welcomed ongoing international efforts at various levels following the 21st OSCE Ministerial Council in Basel on 4 and 5 December aimed at restoring peace and stability in eastern Ukraine, including the work of the Trilateral Contact Group consisting of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office. The Contact Group has met several times since the Ministerial Council to explore ways forward.

The SMM continued to monitor the implementation of the provisions of the Minsk Protocol and Minsk Memorandum and the work of the Joint Centre for Control and Co-ordination (JCCC). The SMM observed a destroyed railway bridge in Mariupol, apparently caused by an explosive device.

Bern, December 26, 2014 – Swiss Foreign Minister and OSCE-Chairperson-in-Office, Didier Burkhalter, expressed his expectation that the meeting between the Trilateral Contact Group (consisting of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the OSCE Chairmanship) and representatives of certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk, scheduled for today in Minsk, would take place without further delay. He took note that this meeting, which had been planned as a follow-up to the Minsk meeting of December 24, has not come about as yet.

BELGRADE, 9 January 2015- Following consultations of senior representatives of four Ministries of Foreign Affairs within the so-called Normandy format of 5 January 2015 in Berlin, and anticipating the possibility of discussions on the conflict in eastern Ukraine at a planned summit meeting in Astana on 15-16 January 2015, the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), consisting of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, met on 8 and 9 January, and held another round of consultations with representatives of the certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in the form of a video-conference on 9 January 2015.

VIENNA/KYIV, 15 January 2015- As a follow-up to the meeting of the four Ministers of Foreign Affairs in the “Normandy format” of 12 January 2015 in Berlin, the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), consisting of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, met today in Kyiv in preparation for the planned consultations of the TCG with representatives of certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in Minsk...

KYIV, 24 January 2015- The Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), consisting of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, convened an urgent meeting in Kyiv on 24 January 2015...

VIENNA, 25 January 2015 – In light of the rapid deterioration of the situation in eastern Ukraine, including yesterday’s shelling of Mariupol and the rising number of civilian casualties, the Serbian Chairmanship of the OSCE today announced that a special meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council will be held on Monday, 26 January at 16:00 hrs in Vienna...

VIENNA, 26 January 2015- A special session of the OSCE Permanent Council was convened today by the Serbian OSCE Chairmanship in light of the rapid deterioration of the situation in eastern Ukraine, and particularly the shelling of civilian areas in Mariupol on 24 January.

BELGRADE, 29 January 2015- The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić, this evening held a telephone conversation with his Special Representative to the Trilateral Contact Group, Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini, who briefed him on the latest developments in the implementation of the peace plan in eastern Ukraine...

The Special Representative of the CiO to the Trilateral Contact Group, Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini, wishes to emphasize that her representatives have been waiting in Minsk since yesterday morning in order to prepare for a meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group with representatives from certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk. Their efforts to contact these representatives were not successful. Ambassador Tagliavini and her representatives continue to be ready for a meeting at any time, and they continue being actively working for this purpose...

MINSK, 30 January 2015- On 28 January President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko met with the representatives of the Trilateral Contact Group, the Special Representative of the Chairperson-in-Office of the OSCE, Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini, representative of Ukraine Leonid Kuchma, and representative of the Russian Federation, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Ukraine, Mikhail Zurabov to exchange views on the most pressing questions relating to the de-escalation of the situation in some districts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions...

MINSK, 31 January 2015- The participants in the Trilateral Contact Group came to Minsk for consultations with the representatives of certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The TCG had prepared a detailed plan for the concrete implementation of the Minsk Protocol and Memorandum, which continue to be the indispensable basis for any peaceful settlement...

In view of the continuing heavy fighting around Debaltsevo and the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation in the area, the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ivica Dačić, calls upon all actors to refrain from violence and to immediately stop all military activities and expresses his profound regret for the loss of lives.

MUNICH, Germany, 7 February 2015 – During the Ministerial Meeting of the OSCE Troika at the margins of the Munich Security Conference (MSC), the Foreign Ministers of the OSCE Troika, Serbia, Switzerland and Germany, had a thorough exchange of views on the situation in and around Ukraine. The OSCE Secretary General also attended the meeting...

BELGRADE, 12 February 2015- The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Serbia's Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić, welcomed the results of the Summit in Minsk and gave his full support to the package of measures for the implementation of the September 2014 Minsk agreements agreed by the Trilateral Contact Group...

Following the recent summit meeting in the Normandy Format in Minsk, the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), consisting of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, today, 14 February 2015, held a round of consultations in the form of a video-conference with representatives of certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

BELGRADE, 16 February 2015 – The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Serbia's Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić today strongly urged all sides to refrain from any action that might endanger the ceasefire in eastern Ukraine, which came into effect on 15 February 2015...

BELGRADE, 8 April 2015 – OSCE’s Chairperson-in-Office and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić, Secretary General Lamberto Zannier, Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine Ambassador Ertugrul Apakan, and OSCE Envoy to the Trilateral Contact Group Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini, met today in Belgrade to plan further steps in responding to crisis in Ukraine...

BELGRADE, 28 April 2015 – OSCE Chairperson in Office, Foreign Minister of Serbia Ivica Dačić, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Swiss Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter met in Belgrade today at the Ministerial Meeting of the OSCE Troika. During the meeting, the Foreign Ministers of Serbia, Switzerland and Germany, together with the OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier, had an extensive exchange of views on different aspects of the situation in and around Ukraine. They reiterated that this crisis can be resolved only through peaceful means and that the political process in that regard should be advanced without delay...

MINSK, 6 May 2015 – The Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), consisting of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, convened a meeting in Minsk today to inaugurate the activities of working groups. Representatives of certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions also took part in the meeting...

BELGRADE, 7 May 2015- OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić welcomed the successful launching of working groups under the auspices of the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG). Yesterday’s TCG meeting in Minsk was convened to inaugurate the activities of the working groups established in line with point 13 of the Package of Measures on the Implementation of Minsk Agreements...

The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the Implementation of the Minsk agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by third parties and security considerations *. In Minsk the Chief Monitor of the SMM chaired the Trilateral Contact Group's Working Group on Security. The SMM observed continuing ceasefire violations in and around Donetsk over an extended period during night and daytime hours...

The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the Implementation of the Minsk Agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by third parties and significant caution regarding security considerations. The SMM observed continuing ceasefire violations at and around Donetsk airport. The SMM observed the exhumation of human remains in “LPR”-controlled Raivka and Zhovte...

BELGRADE, 4 June 2015 –OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić today condemned the latest surge in violence in eastern Ukraine, and called on all parties to return to the negotiating table, pursue a political solution to the conflict through the Trilateral Contact Group and its working groups, as well as to fully respect the Minsk Agreements. “This is the only way to bring suffering of innocent civilians to an end,” said Dačić.

MINSK, 16 June 2015 – Strengthening OSCE engagement with Belarus was the focus of a two-day visit to Minsk by OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier and Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) Michael Georg Link which concluded today...

The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the implementation of the Minsk agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by third parties and security considerations*. The situation at and around Donetsk airport remained relatively calm, with fewer ceasefire violations recorded by the SMM. The SMM conducted crater analysis and revisited a number of heavy weapons holding areas of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and “DPR”. In Minsk, the SMM Chief Monitor chaired the Trilateral Contact Group's Working Group on Security...

BELGRADE, 22 June 2015– The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić today appointed Ambassador Martin Sajdik (Austria) as his new Special Representative in Ukraine and in the Trilateral Contact Group. He follows Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini (Switzerland) who, having fulfilled this assignment for one year, expressed her wish to step down...

KYIV, 17 July- OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić visited the OSCE operations in Kyiv today, where he expressed his full support for their efforts aimed at addressing the crisis in and around Ukraine.