News and press releases

Practical measures that can facilitate the participation of persons with disabilities in parliaments and their access to other elected positions were discussed during an event co-organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on 3 October 2017 on the margins of

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region compared with the previous 24 hours and no ceasefire violations in Luhansk region. The Mission followed up further on reports of civilian casualties in Mariupol and Shchastia. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote, and Petrivske, and recorded a calm situation in all three. Its access remained restricted in the three disengagement areas and in Boikovske. In violation of the withdrawal lines, an SMM unmanned aerial vehicle spotted a tank behind a house in Verkhnoshyrokivske. The SMM visited a heavy weapons permanent storage site; it also observed weapons outside designated storage sites. The Mission facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance of the thermal power plant in Shchastia, water pipelines in Zolote, a pumping station near Artema, water wells near Krasnyi Lyman and the railway station in Verkhnotoretske. The Mission visited two border areas not under government control...

VIENNA, 3 October 2017 – More than 120 representatives of OSCE participating States, Partners for Co-operation and other partnering organizations have gathered for a two-day meeting in Vienna today to review the implementation of OSCE assistance projects under the OSCE Documents on Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) and Stockpiles of Conventional Ammunition (SCA) and explore possible further actions in this field.

Podgorica, 3 October 2017- A two-day training seminar on the Montenegrin Law on Civil Procedure organized by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro in cooperation with the Judiciary Training Centre was held on 2 and 3 October 2017 in Podgorica.

Podgorica, 3 October 2017- A training workshop for the parliamentary services of Montenegro focusing on business culture and communication was organized by the Parliament of Montenegro with support of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro on 28 and 29 September 2017 in Podgorica. Fifteen members of different departments of the parliamentary services participated.

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region between the evenings of 29 and 30 September compared with the previous reporting period. Between the evenings of 30 September and 1 October the Mission recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region compared with the previous 24 hours. In Luhansk region the SMM recorded similar numbers of ceasefire violations between the evenings of 29 and 30 September and between 30 September and 1 October compared with the previous reporting period. While in government-controlled Kriakivka the SMM heard small-arms fire and two explosions nearby and immediately left the area. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations inside the Stanytsia Luhanska and Petrivske disengagement areas. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas and elsewhere.* The SMM assessed impact sites in Dokuchaievsk and in the Trudivski area of Donetsk city. The Mission visited two border areas not under government control. The SMM continued to follow up on the incident at an ammunition depot in Kalynivka, Vinnytsia region...

VIENNA, 2 October 2017 – The decision of the Irish government to call a referendum on whether blasphemy should remain an offence in the Irish Constitution was welcomed by the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media (RFoM) Harlem Désir in a letter to Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar today.