News and press releases

SARAJEVO, 28 June 2016 – The meeting of the Regional Housing Programme (RHP) Steering Committee today in Sarajevo brought together representatives of donors, partner countries, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the OSCE and the Council of Europe Development Bank, to discuss achievements, best practices and challenges in implementing the Programme on Durable Solutions for Refugees and Displaced Persons...

BISHKEK, 28 June 2016 – The OSCE’s role and activities in Security Sector Governance and Reform in Central Asia, and the challenges and opportunities in the field, are the focus of a three-day regional seminar hosted by the OSCE Centre in Bishkek, which began today in the Kyrgyz capital...

In Kominternove the SMM found the bodies of two young boys killed by power lines most probably downed by shelling. In Donetsk region the SMM observed more ceasefire violations on each 25 and 26 June compared to 24 June. In Luhansk region the SMM recorded no ceasefire violations on 25 June, and fewer on 26 June compared to 24 June. It conducted crater analysis in Makiivka. The SMM continued to observe long queues at entry-exit checkpoints along the contact line, where civilians complained about lack of basic facilities. The SMM monitored a public meeting in Lviv. The SMM’s freedom of movement was restricted on seven occasions both in government- and non-government-controlled areas...

VIENNA, 27 June 2016 – Improving international co-operation in response to the refugee and migrant crisis was emphasized by a number of OSCE parliamentarians at a meeting of the OSCE’s Informal Working Group Focusing on the Issue of Migration and Refugee Flows today in Vienna...

Noting that Kazakhstan still has a considerable way to go in meeting its OSCE commitments for democratic elections, the final report by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on the 20 March early parliamentary elections in Kazakhstan recommends that the legal framework be comprehensively reviewed to bring it closer in line with OSCE commitments and other international obligations and standards, as well as to address past and present OSCE/ODIHR electoral assessments and recommendations.

A two-day roundtable discussion organized jointly by the OSCE Centre in Bishkek and the local Aarhus Centre on the role of environmental protection in the sustainable development of tourism in the popular resort region of Issyk-Kul ended on 26 June 2016...

Policy advisors from Central Asian ministries, presidential administrations, parliaments and research institutions completed an OSCE-organized three-day Young Policy Advisers Course on 27 June 2016 in Bishkek, with the aim of improving their professional capacities and enhancing their ability to develop and implement policies in an objective and value-based manner.