News and press releases

Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region. The SMM observed damage in Kruta Hora and Pikuzy as a result of shelling. The Mission saw weapons in violation of the withdrawal lines near non-government-controlled Khoroshe, Lobacheve and Pervomaisk. The Mission recorded ceasefire violations inside and near the Zolote disengagement area. It observed damage as a result of shelling in residential areas near the Zolote disengagement area. Members of the armed formations fired 10m away from an SMM patrol at an SMM UAV flying over the Zolote disengagement area. The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to enable the operation of essential civilian infrastructure in Donetsk region. Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued in all three disengagement areas and again near non-government-controlled Novoazovsk, Oleksandrivske and Verkhnoshyrokivske.

VIENNA/SARAJEVO, 15 February 2019 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, and the Head of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bruce G. Berton, today condemned several threats made against journalists in Bosnia and Herzegovina...

VIENNA, 15 February 2019 – At today’s second meeting of the Informal Working Group on Scales of Contributions of the OSCE, Special Representative of the Chairmanship Slovak State Secretary Lukáš Parízek, who chairs the Group, urged all participating States to focus above all else on management and finances of the OSCE...

• Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions. • The Mission saw weapons in violation of the withdrawal lines near government-controlled Krasnohorivka and Kapitanove. • The Mission recorded a ceasefire violation near the Zolote disengagement area. • The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to enable repair works to and operation of essential civilian infrastructure in Donetsk and Luhansk regions. • Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued in all three disengagement areas and again near non-government-controlled Verkhnoshyrokivske and Zaichenko...

Protecting and promoting human rights while policing assemblies, as well as police accountability, were the focus of a three-day training course organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) from 13 to 15 February 2019 in Yerevan. The training event brought

• Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region. • The Mission followed up on reports of a man who died at a checkpoint in Kreminets. • An SMM unmanned aerial vehicle spotted recent impact craters in non-government-controlled Sokilnyky and government-controlled Travneve. • The Mission saw weapons in violation of the withdrawal lines in Khrustalnyi and near Sofiivka and Molodizhne. • The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to enable repair works to and the operation of essential civilian infrastructure in Donetsk and Luhansk regions. • The Mission followed up on reports of graffiti on a church in Zaporizhzhia. • Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued in all three disengagement areas and near Zaichenko.*

VIENNA, 14 February 2019 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, today expressed his serious concern regarding the amendments to the Russian federal laws on Communication and on Information, Information Technologies and Protection of Information, which were adopted by the State Duma, in the first reading on 12 February...