News and press releases

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. It continued to observe armed men and armoured personnel carriers in Luhansk city centre. The SMM observed shelling damage in a residential area of Dovhe. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations inside the Petrivske disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas.* It facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance of essential infrastructure in Zalizne and Betmanove, as well as, reportedly, the transport of the bodies of deceased soldiers near Novotoshkivske and Sentianivka. The SMM followed up on the situation of civilians from Travneve close to the contact line.

PODGORICA, 25 November 2017- At the OSCE and UNHCR-supported High-Level Forum on Durable Solutions for Displaced Persons from Kosovo, participating institutions, including State Secretary Vukica Jelić (Podgorica), Deputy Prime Minister Dalibor Jevtić (Pristina), Deputy Director Dušan Kozarev (Belgrade) and Migration Unit Director Dejan Ivkovski (Skopje), welcomed further progress achieved in the implementation of the Action Points of the ‘Skopje Process’, and agreed to reinforce commitment to removing obstacles to finding durable solutions for the remaining displaced persons...

VIENNA / WARSAW, 24 November 2017 – Ahead of tomorrow’s International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, and the start of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, senior OSCE leaders today called on participating States to increase efforts to end this human rights violation.

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. It continued to observe armed men and armoured personnel carriers in Luhansk city centre. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it heard an explosion near the Stanytsia Luhansk disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas and elsewhere, including near Kreminets. The SMM observed shelling damage in a residential area of Dokuchaievsk. In Luhansk the SMM observed a convoy of 16 cargo trucks marked with “Humanitarian help from the Russian Federation”. It facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance of essential infrastructure in Betmanove. The SMM observed a calm situation in Kherson region along the administrative boundary line with Crimea. It observed groups of parishioners shout at one another outside a church in Ivano-Frankivsk...

The methodology and initial results of a study on unreported hate crimes against members of selected communities in Poland were explored by representatives of civil society, the national administration and international organizations during a meeting in Warsaw on 24 November 2017.

COPENHAGEN, 24 November 2017 – In his first address as OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President, Georgian parliamentarian George Tsereteli spoke today at the Standing Committee meeting of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in Copenhagen. Noting the role that the OSCE and Council of Europe have historically played in the transformation of Europe, President Tsereteli urged continued dialogue and a creative approach to strengthen international co-operation...

PODGORICA, 24 November 2017- On the occasion of tomorrow’s International Day to End Violence against Women, the OSCE Mission to Montenegro and the Montenegrin Ministry for Human and Minority Rights issued a joint statement condemning all instances of gender-based violence:...