News and press releases

The OSCE Presence in Albania, in co-operation with the Municipality of Tirana and the Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO), launched a call for applications for “Youth Trail 2018: Promoting OSCE Values among Youth” on 8 May 2018. The 2018 Youth Trail will be held from 20 to 24 June 2018 in Tirana.

VIENNA, 9 May 2018 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Harlem Désir and Head of Mission of OSCE to Montenegro Maryse Daviet today strongly condemned the attack against journalist Olivera Lakić in Montenegro. Lakić, an investigative journalist with Vijesti newspaper was shot in the leg last night in front of her home, in an attack by three individuals. She was immediately hospitalized and, according to media reports, is currently in stable condition.

LISBON, 8 May 2018 – Governments, parliaments and international organizations should address the growing challenges associated with information and communications technology (ICT) by enhancing co-operation and implementing policies to bridge gaps in current legal frameworks, participants said today at a conference in Lisbon organized by the Portuguese Parliament and co-hosted by the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly. Ensuring that freedom of information and individual privacy are not infringed upon while countering cyber threats is equally important, they said...

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske. It recorded ceasefire violations inside the Petrivske disengagement area and its access remained restricted there and elsewhere, including at a border area near Izvaryne (near the border with the Russian Federation)*. The SMM continued to facilitate access to the Donetsk Filtration Station for Voda Donbassa employees and heard ceasefire violations in the area, despite security guarantees. The SMM continued to facilitate and monitor repairs to high-voltage power lines near Yuzhna-Lomuvatka, Almazna and Veselohorivka, and to the Petrivske pumping station near Artema.

On 8 May 2018 at 06:57 (Moscow time), the seventy-fourth Russian convoy arrived at the Donetsk Border Crossing Point (BCP). A total of 16 vehicles were checked by Russian Federation border guards and customs officers prior to their crossing into Ukraine. All 16 vehicles had crossed back into the Russian Federation by 13:53 on 8 May...

Kamensk-Shakhtinskiy, Russian Federation. The Observer Mission (OM) continues to operate 24/7 at both Border Crossing Points (BCPs). The overall number of border crossings by persons increased at both BCPs...

The first national tabletop exercise on handling cyber/ ICT security incidents, organized by the OSCE Mission to Skopje and the Agency for Electronic Communications (AEC), was held on 8 May 2018 in Skopje...