News and press releases
News and press releases from the OSCE's global activities.
ODIHR recommends deployment of election assessment mission to Estonia
Publishing date: 31 January 2011
In advance of the parliamentary elections in Estonia planned for 6 March, ODIHR conducted a needs assessment mission to the country on 10-13 January...
OSCE-supported conference on local self-governance in Kyrgyzstan highlights importance of complementing political decentralization with fiscal restructuring
Publishing date: 28 January 2011
BISHKEK, 28 January 2011 – The need to complement political decentralization with fiscal decentralization was highlighted at an OSCE-supported conference on local self-governance in Kyrgyzstan today...
Improving human rights in Kyrgyzstan’s prison system
Publishing date: 28 January 2011
Training on human rights and related issues for prison officers in Kyrgyzstan concluded successfully on 26 January 2011 in Bishkek. The series of lectures for prison personnel from the National Penitentiary Service (GSIN) focussed on developing the officers’ understanding of the importance of enforcing basic human rights standards in the penitentiary system...
OSCE Mission to Serbia welcomes adoption of Interior Ministry Development Strategy
Publishing date: 28 January 2011
BELGRADE, 28 January 2011 – The Head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia, Ambassador Dimitrios Kypreos, welcomed today the adoption of the Interior Ministry’s 2011-2016 Development Strategy, saying it advances the country's police reform work...
OSCE supports non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction
Publishing date: 27 January 2011
Weapons of mass destruction present a serious challenge to international peace and security. Stopping their proliferation requires a co-ordinated and comprehensive international response. United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1540 requires all states to contribute to putting in place the necessary structures to prevent the proliferation of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, including their means of delivery...
OSCE Chairperson marks International Holocaust Remembrance Day, emphasizes importance of tolerance education
Publishing date: 27 January 2011
VILNIUS, 27 January 2011 – The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Audronius Ažubalis, commemorated International Holocaust Remembrance Day today with a call for OSCE participating States to further intensify efforts to combat anti-Semitism and other forms of intolerance and promote remembrance and education...
Moldovan elections met most commitments says ODIHR report
Publishing date: 26 January 2011
The early parliamentary elections in Moldova on 28 November were well administered and offered voters a genuine choice, while the media provided a broad range of political views and election-related information, says the final report released by ODIHR on 26 January...