News and press releases
News and press releases from the OSCE's global activities.
OSCE, at UN General Assembly Special Session on world drug problem, highlights importance of strengthening co-operation in combating trafficking
Publishing date: 21 April 2016
NEW YORK, 21 April 2016 – Co-operation is needed more than ever to address the world drug problem and to significantly improve international and regional security, said the Head of the OSCE’s Transnational Threats Department’s Strategic Police Matters Unit, Guy Vinet on Wednesday as he addressed the United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS 2016) in New York on the world drug problem...
OSCE Office in Tajikistan supports the second cycle of explosive ordnance disposal training for regional specialists
Publishing date: 21 April 2016
More than 40 specialists from Afghanistan, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan completed a training seminar on advanced explosive ordnance disposal on April 20 2016 in Dushanbe, organized by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan as a part of a multi-year project...
Latest from OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine, based on information received as of 19:30hrs, 19 April 2016
Publishing date: 20 April 2016
The SMM recorded a lower level of violence in Donetsk region compared to the previous reporting period. It noted weapons in violation of withdrawal lines and others absent from storage sites. The SMM observed long queues at checkpoints along the contact line. The Mission attempted to monitor in border areas outside government control but was repeatedly prevented from doing so. The SMM’s freedom of movement was restricted further in areas not controlled by the Government...
Weekly Update from the OSCE Observer Mission at Russian Checkpoints Gukovo and Donetsk based on information as of 19 April 2016
Publishing date: 20 April 2016
Kamensk-Shakhtinskiy, Russian Federation. The Observer Mission (OM) continues to operate 24/7 at both Border Crossing Points (BCPs). The overall cross-border traffic increased at both BCPs....
OSCE/ODIHR Director Link welcomes lifting of travel ban for Azerbaijani human rights defenders
Publishing date: 20 April 2016
WARSAW, 20 April 2016 Michael Georg Link, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), today welcomed Azerbaijan’s decision to lift travel bans on Leyla and Arif Yunus, two prominent Azerbaijani human rights defenders, who are also spouses...
High-level conference marks 20 years of OSCE High Commissioner’s Hague Recommendations on education rights
Publishing date: 20 April 2016
THE HAGUE, 20 April 2016- Education is in many ways the space where issues of equality, national identity and the concept of nationhood are being negotiated, said OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities Astrid Thors today as she opened a high-level conference to mark 20 years of The Hague Recommendations Regarding the Education Rights of National Minorities...
65th IPRM meeting takes place in Ergneti
Publishing date: 20 April 2016
ERGNETI, 20 April 2016 – The 65th meeting under the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) took place today in Ergneti. The meeting was co-facilitated by Kęstutis Jankauskas, the Head of the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM), and Guenther Baechler, the Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus...