News and press releases

VIENNA, 18 June 2018 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Harlem Désir today expressed concern following the adoption of legislative amendments in Belarus which further restrict media activities in the country. The amendments affect the work of national mass media, internet resources, and foreign media outlets.

Representatives of the Presidential Administration of Kyrgyzstan, the Central Commission for Elections and Referenda (CEC), the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the Swiss Embassy to Kyrgyzstan participated in the opening ceremony of the Capacity Development Centre for the State Registration Services under the Government (SRS) in Bishkek on 14 June 2018.

Vienna, 17 June 2018 – A group of 25 Permanent Representatives to the OSCE will be traveling to Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan from 18 to 22 June 2018. In all three countries, the ambassadors will meet with representatives of the national authorities and parliaments, as well as with civil society.

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, compared with the previous 24 hours. Surface-to-air missiles and anti-aircraft gun rounds were fired in the direction of an SMM long-range unmanned aerial vehicle flying over Betmanove. The Mission observed damage caused by shelling and small-arms fire in and near residential areas of Pikuzy, Dokuchaievsk, Holubivske and Holubivka, as well as near Bohdanivka. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations near the Stanytsia Luhanska and Zolote disengagement areas. The Mission’s access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas and was also restricted near Sosnivske. The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line. The Mission continued to facilitate the access of Voda Donbassa water company employees to the Donetsk Filtration Station, including through monitoring the security situation around the station. It monitored and facilitated repairs to the Petrivske pumping station near Artema and to sewage and water pipelines leading to the entry-exit checkpoint in Stanytsia Luhanska.

At 05:06 on 15 June, an SMM long-range unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that was flying over Betmanove (non-government-controlled, formerly Krasnyi Partyzan, 23km north-east of Donetsk) recorded a condensation trail of a missile following a ballistic trajectory at a significantly lower altitude than the UAV from the north-east.

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. In Pikuzy, a member of the armed formations fired shots in the general direction of the SMM. The Mission followed up on reports of civilian casualties in Kuibyshevskyi district of Donetsk city. It observed fresh damage caused by shelling in a residential area of Donetskyi. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations inside the Zolote and Petrivske disengagement areas. The Mission’s access remained restricted in all three areas as well as in or near the Trudivski area of Donetsk city’s Petrovskyi district, Pokrovka, Kozatske, Donetsk’s Kuibyshevskyi district and near Dovzhanske at the border with the Russian Federation. The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near residential areas in Donetskyi. The Mission continued to facilitate the access of Voda Donbassa water company employees to the Donetsk Filtration Station, including through monitoring the security situation around the station. It continued to monitor and facilitate repairs to the Petrivske pumping station near Artema.

A five-day training course aimed at strengthening the capacity of Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Security Service and Prosecutor’s Office officials to disrupt the financing of terrorist networks and to apply sanctions pursuant to relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions concluded on 15 June 2018 in Astana...