News and press releases

• Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. • The SMM saw damage from small-arms fire to a shop in Dokuchaievsk, reportedly on 18 July. • The Mission continued to monitor the disengagement area near Stanytsia Luhanska and observed an assessment of the broken section of the bridge in preparation for future repairs. • It saw anti-tank mines and fresh craters inside of the disengagement area near Zolote. • The SMM saw for the first time unexploded ordnance in Nova Marivka and a remnant of a rocket-propelled grenade in Verkhnoshyrokivske. • The Mission facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to facilitate repairs to and the operation of critical civilian infrastructure, including repairs to a water pipeline between Zolote-3/Stakhanovets and Popasna. • Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at a checkpoint of the armed formations near Verkhnoshyrokivske.*

OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) Lamberto Zannier visited the Russian Federation from 22 to 26 July 2019, for the second time since taking up his mandate in 2017. Zannier continued his dialogue with the Russian authorities about minority issues both inside and outside Russia and took stock of inter-ethnic relations in the Republic of Tatarstan...

Promoting a green economy and resource efficiency was the focus of a workshop held in Yerevan, on 24 and 25 July by the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA). The event was organized in co-operation with the Government of Armenia.

COPENHAGEN, 25 July 2019 – In order to better address relevant challenges in the OSCE area OSCE PA President George Tsereteli (Georgia), entering his second term, appointed this week a new Special Representative and a new Special Rapporteur.

A two-day roundtable discussion supported by the OSCE Programme Office in Nur-Sultan on the sustainable management of the Zhaiyk (Ural) river basin ecosystem, which traverses Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation, concluded on 26 July 2019 in Oral, Kazakhstan.

An OSCE-supported workshop on facilitating the rehabilitation of prisoners convicted of violent extremism, including returning Foreign Terrorist Fighters, through risk assessments and effective classification measures concluded on 26 July 2019 in Nur-Sultan.

Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region. The Mission continued to monitor the disengagement area near Stanytsia Luhanska. Aerial imagery available to the SMM revealed the presence of fresh craters inside and near the Zolote disengagement area. The Mission saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines in government-controlled Vidrodzhennia and near Lysychansk. The SMM facilitated and monitored a transfer of persons convicted before the conflict from non-government- to government-controlled areas in Luhansk region. The Mission facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to facilitate repairs to and the operation of critical civilian infrastructure. Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at non-government-controlled checkpoints near Zaichenko and Verkhnoshyrokivske...

On 25 July at 06:39 (Moscow time), the eighty-third Russian convoy arrived at the Donetsk Border Crossing Point (BCP). A total of 9 vehicles were checked by Russian Federation border guards and customs officers prior to their crossing into Ukraine. All 9 vehicles had crossed back into the Russian Federation by 13:46 on 25 July...

On 25 July, the Head of the OSCE Mission to Moldova, Claus Neukirch, and the Defence Minister of the Republic of Moldova, Pavel Voicu, paid a joint visit to the military base in the city of Floresti in the north of Moldova. The visit offered an opportunity to assess the implementation of the OSCE Mission’s project on explosive risk mitigation. The project is run in co-operation with the Ministry. It aims at improving the general safety and security of the citizens of the Republic of Moldova living in the close vicinity of the ammunitions depots...

Strengthening rule of law-compliant criminal justice responses to terrorism was the aim of a two-day seminar for over 30 Turkmen practitioners from relevant government agencies and the bar association which concluded on 25 July 2019 in Ashgabat...

Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region. A boy was injured due to the detonation of an explosive device in Khrestivka and a girl was injured due to shelling in Pervomaisk, reportedly on 15 and 20 July. The Mission saw recent damage caused by shelling to a Cultural House in Pikuzy and to a residential building in Pervomaisk, reportedly on 20 July. Inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, the SMM continued to monitor the operation of a shuttle bus service in government-controlled areas north of the bridge. It observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines in non-government-controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. An SMM UAV spotted the presence of a train and aerial imagery revealed the presence of vehicle tracks and a trench extension near the border with the Russian Federation. The SMM saw anti-tank mines, some for the first time, near Krasnohorivka, Staromykhailivka, Marinka and the Trudivski area of Donetsk city’s Petrovskyi district. The Mission facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to facilitate the operation of critical civilian infrastructure, including the drilling of wells in Raivka. Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at a checkpoint near non-government-controlled Shevchenko and in Nova Marivka.

Developing effective methods of providing assistance to the victims of human trafficking was the central topic discussed at an OSCE roundtable meeting in Ashgabat on 23 July 2019.

NEW YORK, United States of America, 24 July 2019 – The successful management of diversity in society is key to avoiding conflicts, said OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities Lamberto Zannier at the United Nations in New York on 19 July, as he led a discussion on how regional organizations play a key role in the prevention of conflict...

• Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. • The Mission saw fresh damage caused by shelling to a civilian property in Olenivka, reportedly ten days ago. • Small-arms fire was directed at an SMM mini-unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) near Chermalyk and at an SMM mid-range UAV near Berezivske. • Inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, the SMM continued to monitor the operation of a shuttle bus service in government-controlled areas north of the bridge. • The Mission facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to facilitate repairs to critical civilian infrastructure, including repairs to power lines near Betmanove. • Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at a checkpoint near non-government-controlled Zaichenko and Shevchenko.

KAMENSK-SHAKHTINSKIY, Russian Federation. The Observer Mission (OM) continues to operate 24/7 at both Border Crossing Points (BCPs). The overall number of border crossings by persons increased at both BCPs compared to the previous week.

Strengthening the capacity of Kazakhstan to counter terrorist financing was the aim of a two-day train-the-trainers course held at the OSCE Secretariat in Vienna on 22 and 23 July 2019. The event was organized by the OSCE’s Transnational Threats Department, the OSCE Programme Office in Nur-Sultan, and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime's Global Programme against Money Laundering.

MARIUPOL, 23 July 2019 – Following up on their report of 8 July 2019, the Chair of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s General Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions, Kyriakos Hadjiyianni (MP, Cyprus) and former chair Margareta Kiener Nellen (MP, Switzerland) held a series of meetings yesterday in Mariupol related to the humanitarian situation in the heavily conflict impacted region of southeast Ukraine...

VIENNA, 23 July 2019 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, sent to the Prime Minister of Albania, Edi Rama, a legal review on the amendments to the Law on Audiovisual Media in Albania, the Law on Electronic Communications, and other relevant provisions regarding the regulation of certain types of content provided through the internet...

The use of digital tools and platforms for promoting content to the general public is the topic of a five-day training course for employees of the Institution of the Protector of Human Rights and Freedoms of Montenegro and the Agency for Electronic Media, which began on 22 July 2019 in Podgorica. The course is organized by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro...

Compared with the previous reporting period, between the evenings of 19 and 20 July, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and in Luhansk regions. Between the evenings of 20 and 21 July, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region compared with the previous 24 hours. Following the beginning of a recommitment to the ceasefire at 00:01 on 21 July, in connection with the agreement reached at the meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group in Minsk on 17 July, the SMM recorded 79 ceasefire violations, including six explosions. A man died in a garden in Krasnohorivka due to gunfire. A woman died and several people, including a child, suffered shrapnel injuries in Pervomaisk. The Mission observed fresh gunfire damage to a garden in Krasnohorivka, to residential houses in Chermalyk, and fresh damage due to shelling to houses in Pervomaisk. Inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, the SMM continued to monitor the operation of a shuttle bus service in government-controlled areas, north of the bridge. The Mission observed ceasefire violations inside the Zolote disengagement area and an infantry fighting vehicle inside the Petrivske disengagement area. The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines in government- and non-government-controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The SMM observed mines near Yasne and Slavne, some for the first time, as well as unexploded ordnance near Khrestivka. The Mission facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to facilitate the operation of the Donetsk Filtration Station and to monitor the security situation near the pumping station near Vasylivka. Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at checkpoints near non-government-controlled Verkhnoshyrokivske, Zaichenko and Petrivske.* In Kyiv, the SMM observed a commemoration event for a journalist killed three years ago. The SMM observed a calm security situation in several regions of Ukraine during the Parliamentary Elections.

KYIV, 22 July 2019 – Ukraine’s early parliamentary elections were efficiently run and respected fundamental freedoms. The campaign was nevertheless characterised by widespread malpractice and the misuse of political finance through a complex blend of business and political interests, international observers concluded in a preliminary statement published today...

A three-day train-the-trainer course on countering terrorist financing was organized in Vienna for Uzbek participants from 17 to 19 July 2019 by the OSCE’s Transnational Threats Department, in co-operation with the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime's Global Programme against Money Laundering (UNODC/GPML)...

Following a recommitment to the ceasefire which began at 00:01 on 21 July, in connection with the agreement reached at the meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group in Minsk on 17 July, the SMM continued to monitor the security situation...

Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region. The Mission learned about readiness to observe the recommitment to the ceasefire by the Ukrainian side of the JCCC and the armed formations in Donetsk and Luhansk starting from 00:01 on 21 July. The SMM followed up on a woman who died of shrapnel injuries in Donetsk city. The Mission saw fresh damage caused by gunfire to civilian properties in Donetsk city and in Marinka. Inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, the SMM continued to monitor demining activities and the operation of a shuttle bus service in government-controlled areas north of the bridge. The Mission facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to facilitate repairs to water pipelines near Horlivka and Maiorsk, as well as to power lines near Novokyivka. Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at a checkpoint near non-government-controlled Verkhnoshyrokivske...

The OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek on 19 July 2019 launched the first of four clean-up campaigns at Issyk-Kul Lake, in Kyrgyzstan, as an integral part of a roundtable discussion on the importance of the involvement of public institutions and society, and public awareness on environmental issues. The discussion is taking place in Chok-Tal village and organized by the Issyk-Kul Aarhus Centre, the Clean Issyk-Kul Public Foundation, and the Chon-Sary-Oy ayil local authority with support of the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek...

The OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe in co-operation with the Office of the Prosecutor General, the Ministry of Interior, the Supreme Court and other State agencies, organized a series of training courses on the Istanbul Protocol, which concluded on 13 July in Sarob, near Dushanbe. Some 150 judges, prosecutors and law enforcement officials of Tajikistan participated in the courses...

The OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe conducted a series of training courses from 28 June to 19 July 2019 on using social media to promote the work of Public Councils on Police Reform in Tajikistan. The courses were organized in Dushanbe, Gharm, Kulob and Khujand and brought together 100 participants, including members of the Republican, Regional and District Public Councils on Police Reform, as well as representatives of the country’s Interior Ministry...

Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region. A man was injured by gunfire in Yasynuvata. The Mission saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines in training areas near non-government-controlled Miusynsk and Ternove. Inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, the SMM continued to observe the operation of a shuttle bus service in government-controlled areas north of the bridge. Trains were spotted moving east and west in non-government-controlled areas near the border with the Russian Federation. The Mission facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to facilitate repairs to water pipelines near Holubivka and Maiorsk, as well as to powerlines near Spartak. Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at checkpoints in non-government-controlled areas of southern Donetsk region near Zaichenko and Shevchenko...

Following Slovakia’s presidential election on 16 and 30 March 2019, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) has published its  final report summing up the election observation. The election was competitive, pluralistic and respected fundamental freedoms. It was

VIENNA, 20 July 2019 – On the third anniversary of the murder of journalist Pavel Sheremet in Ukraine, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, today reiterated his call on the Ukrainian authorities to step up their efforts in ending impunity for attacks on and murders of journalists...

VIENNA, 19 July 2019 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, welcomed today the court decision in Turkey handing down prison sentences to seven people over the murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink...

• Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. • The SMM followed up on reports of a man injured by a mine explosion in Pryvitne. • It saw damage to a residential house in Zolote-5/Mykhailivka. • Inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, the SMM continued to observe demining activities by the State Emergency Services of Ukraine and the operation of a shuttle bus service. • The Mission saw weapons in violations of withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line in Luhansk region. • The Mission saw long queues at checkpoints of the armed formations along the contact line. • The Mission facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to facilitate repairs of critical civilian infrastructure on both sides of the contact line. • Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at checkpoints in non-government-controlled areas of southern Donetsk region near Zaichenko and Novolaspa.*

The OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe trained some 320 representatives of local governments, teachers, parents from migrant families and people whose relatives have travelled to conflict zones as foreign terrorist fighters as part of a whole-of-society approach to tackling violent extremism and terrorist radicalization among youth in Tajikistan. The training courses were conducted in 12 districts of the Sughd and Khatlon regions from 24 June to 18 July 2019...

SARAJEVO, 18 July 2019 – A workshop on identifying victims of human trafficking in migration flows concluded today in Sarajevo. Organized jointly by the OSCE Office of the Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings (OSR/CTHB) and the OSCE’s field operations in South-Eastern Europe, the workshop focused on implementing the OSCE’s uniform guidelines to identify victims of human trafficking...

BRATISLAVA, 18 July 2019- OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Slovak Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Miroslav Lajčák welcomed the new recommitment to an unlimited ceasefire in eastern Ukraine, starting from 21 July at 00 hrs. 01 min. (Kyiv time), as agreed at the meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group held in Minsk on 17 July.

ERGNETI, 18 July 2019- The 94th Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) meeting was held today in Ergneti. Erik Høeg, Head of the European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM), and Ambassador Rudolf Michalka, Special Representative for the South Caucasus of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, co-facilitated the meeting....

BISHKEK, 18 July 2019 – The 21st Central Asia Media Conference organized by the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, concluded today in Bishkek...

A new web-based course on combating domestic violence, created by the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine and the online education platform EdEra, is open for users starting from 18 July 2019. The course for the general public aims at promoting awareness among Ukrainians of what domestic violence is and how it can be dealt with...

MINSK, 18 July 2019 – The Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in Ukraine and in the Trilateral Contact Group, Ambassador Martin Sajdik, made the following statement to the press after the meeting of the TCG and its working groups in Minsk on 17 July 2019:

MINSK, 17 July 2019- The Trilateral Contact Group, with the participation of representatives of certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, acknowledging the positive impact of the practice of recommitment to ceasefire, stressing the importance of ensuring peace and calm for the population, and also guided by earlier agreements and obligations of the sides...

• Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. • A man from Chermalyk died from shrapnel injuries. • The SMM saw fresh damage caused by gunfire to civilian properties in Zolote-5/Mykhailivka and Marinka, and craters caused by shelling near residential houses in Khreshchatytske. • Inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, the SMM continued to observe demining activities and the operation of a shuttle bus service. • The Mission saw anti-tank mines and a wire obstacle on the road inside the Zolote disengagement area. • It saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines in non-government-controlled areas of Luhansk region; specifically, it saw mortars near Sentianivka and multiple launch rocket systems in a training area near Miusynsk. • The SMM saw for the first time unexploded ordnance near Molodizhne and in Sentianivka.

COPENHAGEN, 17 July 2019 – Some 60 observers from the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, including 42 parliamentarians from 20 countries, are deploying to Ukraine this week for the 21 July parliamentary elections. Finnish parliamentarian Ilkka Kanerva will serve as Special Co-ordinator and leader of the short-term OSCE observer mission, following an appointment by the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Slovak Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajcak...

VIENNA, 17 July 2019 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, welcomed today’s court decision to acquit two journalists and a human rights defender in Turkey...

Compared with the previous 24 hours, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The SMM saw fresh damage caused by gunfire to civilian properties in Dokuchaievsk and Marinka. Inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, the SMM continued to observe demining activities; it also observed that a shuttle bus service had been introduced to transport people from an area south of the entry-exit checkpoint to the broken section of the bridge and in opposite direction. It saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line. The Mission facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire to facilitate repairs of critical civilian infrastructure on both sides of the contact line, including to water pipelines in government-controlled Artema and power lines in non-government-controlled Zolote-5/Mykhailivka. Restrictions of the SMM’s access continued, including at checkpoints near Zaichenko, Bezimenne and Novoazovsk, all in non-government-controlled areas of southern Donetsk region...

KAMENSK-SHAKHTINSKIY, Russian Federation. The Observer Mission (OM) continues to operate 24/7 at both Border Crossing Points (BCPs). The overall number of border crossings by persons increased at both BCPs compared to the previous week...

• Compared with the previous reporting period, between the evenings of 12 and 13 July, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region. • Between the evenings of 13 and 14 July, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous 24 hours. • A man was injured by shrapnel in Horlivka and another man was injured by a bullet in Dokuchaievsk. • The SMM saw damage from shelling to and near civilian properties, including a school, in Lukove and to a day-clinic in Khreshchatytske, as well as from small-arms fire to a residential building in Zolote-5/Mykhailivka. • Inside the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area, the SMM saw members of the State Emergency Service conducting demining activities.

VIENNA, 15 July 2019 – Multilateralism and co-operation lie at the core of the OSCE’ comprehensive concept of security, participants said today at the opening of a two-day OSCE meeting in Vienna...

Thirty young entrepreneurs completed the first-ever four-week ”Mini-MBA” in Business Management, initiated by the Entrepreneurship Support Centre (ESC) in Osh with the support of the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek, on 12 July 2019...

• Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region. • The SMM followed up on reports of a woman killed in Holmivskyi due to shrapnel injuries and a woman injured by shrapnel when her house was damaged by gunfire in Olenivka; it observed damage from shelling and gunfire to houses in Horlivka, Chermalyk and Tavrycheske, to a power substation in Irmino and to the House of Culture and a functioning school in Zolote-5/Mykhailivka. • The Mission saw fresh craters and damage from shelling to residential buildings inside the Zolote disengagement area.

VIENNA, 13 July 2019 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, today condemned the grenade attack on the office building of Ukrainian TV channel 112 Ukraine in Kyiv.