News and press releases

BISHKEK, 15 June 2016 – A two-day OSCE-supported regional inter-parliamentary meeting on monitoring and evaluation mechanisms that brought together 20 parliamentarians from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russian Federation, and Tajikistan concluded today in Bishkek. High-level government officials, independent experts, representatives of civil society, international organizations, academia and mass media also attended the event...

KYIV, 15 June 2016 – Yesterday in Kyiv Nadiya Savchenko, Member of the Ukrainian Parliament, recipient of the country’s highest Hero of Ukraine order, and recently released from a Russian prison, paid a surprise visit to an OSCE Parliamentary Assembly delegation under the leadership of President Ilkka Kanerva (MP Finland), who is in Kyiv for meetings with the Ukrainian President and other high level officials...

The SMM observed more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with 11 and 12 June. The Mission conducted crater analysis and observed damages to civilian houses caused by shelling. The SMM continued to monitor the withdrawal of weapons. It facilitated adherence to the ceasefire to enable repairs to infrastructure. The SMM noted long queues at entry-exit points along the contact line and monitored a border area not controlled by the Government. The SMM noted that the power supply of its repeater in Donetsk city, needed for the operation of remote monitoring equipment, had been reconnected. The Mission faced three restrictions to its freedom of movement.*...

VIENNA, 14 June 2016 – Preventing and responding to the terrorist radicalization of youth north and south of the Mediterranean was in focus of the OSCE Mediterranean Contact Group meeting held today in Vienna...

COPENHAGEN, 14 June 2016 – A report and draft resolution drawing connections between economic and environmental concerns with the broader security environment of the OSCE area will be taken up by members of parliament at the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s 25th Annual Session, being held in Tbilisi, Georgia, from 1 to 5 July...

BIJELJINA, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 14 June 2016 – The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), in co-operation with the German Embassy in Sarajevo, organized a conference on the role of local communities in economic development bringing together over 80 mayors, leaders of development agencies, local entrepreneurs and government officials who discussed current economic trends and their implications for the local economy...

During her visit to Kosovo from 7 to 10 June 2016, the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities Astrid Thors focused on education, implementation of the framework of language rights and access to justice. The High Commissioner continues to urge for the adoption of the Strategy for the