News and press releases

WARSAW, 10 October 2017 – The protection of children of those sentenced to death or executed should be strengthened in those OSCE countries that still practice capital punishment, Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), and Marta Santos Pais, the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, said today on the occasion of the World Day against the Death Penalty...

Malta’s early parliamentary elections on 3 June 2017 were held in a professional and efficient manner, with electoral stakeholders expressing confidence in most stages of the process, but aspects of the legal framework could benefit from further review, concludes the final report issued by the OSCE

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region between the evenings of 6 and 7 October compared with the previous reporting period. Between the evenings of 7 and 8 October the Mission recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region compared with the previous 24 hours. In Luhansk region the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations between the evenings of 6 and 7 October compared with the previous reporting period and more between 7 and 8 October compared with the previous 24 hours. The Mission saw damage from gunfire to a residential building in Dokuchaievsk. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske and recorded ceasefire violations inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in all three areas and elsewhere, including in Siedove near the border with the Russian Federation.* The Mission saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near Zaichenko and Uzhivka. It visited two border areas not under government control. The SMM monitored a gathering in Lviv where a concert was cancelled...

OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) Lamberto Zannier, on 9 October 2017, said he is actively engaged with the government of Ukraine on how best to accommodate the ethnic and linguistic diversity of society. The High Commissioner is paying particular attention to inter-ethnic

A seven-day training course aimed at strengthening the capacity of government officials from Kyrgyzstan to conduct investigations in the field of countering terrorist financing was organized by the OSCE’s Transnational Threats Department and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)’s Global Programme against Money Laundering, with the support of the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek, from 2 to 8 October 2017 in Issyk-Kul, Kyrgyzstan...

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions – including, however, more explosions in Donetsk region – compared with the previous reporting period. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas; its access remained restricted in the three areas and elsewhere, including near Verkhnoshyrokivske.* The SMM facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance to essential infrastructure near Shchastia, Zolote, Artema and Druzhba. The Mission visited a border area not under government control. In Kyiv, the SMM again observed a protest in relation to legislation concerning local governance and reintegration of areas outside of government control in Donetsk and Luhansk regions...

YEREVAN / BAKU, 7 October 2017- The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group (Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, Stephane Visconti of France, and Andrew Schofer of the United States of America) met with Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan in Yerevan on 6 October and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Baku on 7 October to finalize preparations for the upcoming meeting of the Presidents, including possible topics for discussion. The Co-Chairs were joined by the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Andrzej Kasprzyk...