News and press releases

The importance and benefits of following up on recommendations from election observers was the focus of an expert meeting organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) in Warsaw on 8 September 2017. The event was the first organized within the framework of a

A new project on managing wildfires in Chernobyl-affected areas, implemented by the OSCE in close co-operation with the Global Fire Monitoring Centre based in Freiburg, Germany, was launched on 7 September 2017 at an inaugural meeting in Kyiv...

Ergneti, 7 September 2017- On 7 September 2017, the 80th meeting under the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) was held in Ergneti. Erik Hoeeg, Acting Head of the European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM), and Ambassador Guenther Baechler, Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus, co-facilitated the meeting....

From 3 to 6 September 2017, OSCE Senior Gender Adviser Amarsanaa Darisuren visited Ukraine, where she held meetings with government officials, including representatives of the ministries for foreign and internal affairs and social policy, to discuss key developments in gender equality in the country...

VIENNA, 7 September 2017 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Harlem Désir today welcomed the release of Zhanbolat Mamay, acting Chief Editor of the newspaper Sayasi Kalam Tribuna in Kazakhstan, but voiced concern about the imposition of a ban on practicing the profession of journalism...

Women’s full and equal political participation, the role of political parties and the contribution of the women’s movement to women’s political empowerment were the focus of discussions during the International Forum on Women’s Political Empowerment in Budapest on 7 September 2017. The Forum was

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region compared with the previous reporting period. The Mission again asked armed forces and formations about the recommitment to cease fire, as well as instructions on interaction with the SMM. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations near the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas and elsewhere, including in Verkhnoshyrokivske, Novolaspa and Svitle.* The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near Shymshynivka and Buhaivka. It facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance to the Horlivka-Toretsk pipeline and the thermal power plant in Shchastia. The Mission continued to monitor the situation at schools near the contact line on both sides. It visited two border areas not under government control. The SMM monitored two protests in Kyiv....