News and press releases

Over the holiday weekend the situation in the western and central Ukraine was calm. Tensions remained in the Donbas- the separatists continued the occupation of the building of the state security service (SBU) in Luhansk as well as several other administrative buildings in Donetsk Oblast. Due to the proximity to this region, the situation in parts of southern and eastern Ukraine remains tense. Both proponents of the unitary Ukraine and separatists declared that their implementation of the Geneva statement depends on the mutual, synchronized disarmament and vacation of buildings.

OSCE supports senior Kyrgyz officials visit to international forum on anti-corruption OSCE Centre in Bishkek supported participation of eight representatives from the Economy Ministry of Kyrgyzstan, including Minister, at the 16th Anti-Corruption network steering group meeting in Paris, France on 16 to 18 April 2014.

KYIV, Ukraine, 19 April, 2014 –Acting Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Deshchytsia and the Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM), Amb. Ertugrul Apakan, met today at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. The meeting was also attended by representatives of the participants of the 17 April Geneva meeting – the European Union, the Russian Federation and the United States.

Teams of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) gauged reaction to the Geneva Statement of 17 April. The situation in Western and Central Ukraine remains calm. In Luhansk and Donetsk districts it is tense owing to the continued activity of armed opponents of the central government. In the southern part of the country and in other parts of Eastern Ukraine, the situation was assessed as stable and relatively calm.

The situation in Western and Central Ukraine remains calm, whereas in Luhansk and Donetsk districts it is tense due to the activity of armed opponents of the central government, and Ukrainian special forces conducting a “counter-terrorist operation”. In the southern part of the country and in other parts of Eastern Ukraine some tension was felt and, overall, the number of roadblocks in Kharkiv, Dnepropetrovsk, Kherson and Odessa appeared to have increased.

Bern, April 17, 2014- Swiss Foreign Minister and OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Didier Burkhalter welcomed the outcome of the discussions between the Foreign Ministers of Ukraine, the United States and the Russian Federation as well as the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, who met today in Geneva.

VIENNA, 17 April 2014 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today condemned the seizure of the television tower in Sloviansk in eastern Ukraine...