News and press releases

ASTANA, 6 April 2017 – An OSCE-supported roundtable discussion on introducing the Protocol on Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) in Kazakhstan began today in Astana, Kazakhstan...

VIENNA, 5 April 2017 – There is no alternative but to reduce the risk of a military escalation and find a way to constructively implement the Minsk agreements, said the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office’s Special Representative to the Trilateral Contact Group, Martin Sajdik, and the Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine, Ertugrul Apakan, in their addresses to the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna today...

Despite the relatively calmer security situation since the renewed commitment to the ceasefire beginning on 1 April, the SMM continued to observe ceasefire violations. In Luhansk region the Mission observed fewer ceasefire violations compared with the previous reporting period. In Donetsk region, however, it observed an increase in the number of ceasefire violations for the second consecutive day, including twice as many explosions than in the previous reporting period. The Mission followed up on a report of a civilian casualty in Kurakhove and observed impact sites at a checkpoint area in Molodizhne. The Mission monitored the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske, but its access there and elsewhere remained restricted.* It continued to observe weapons in violation of withdrawal lines. The SMM observed demining activity as well as repair work near the Donetsk Water Filtration Station that led to restoration of electricity to the Station and to the town of Avdiivka. The Mission monitored a border area currently not under government control. The SMM noted no changes and a calm situation at the blockade sites near Buhas and Bakhmut...

WARSAW, 5 April 2017 – Michael Georg Link, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), today expressed grave concern over elements of amendments adopted to Hungary’s higher education law that could have a serious negative affect on the ability of the Central European University in Budapest to operate...

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 decreased at both BCPs...

ERGNETI, 4 April 2017- The 76th meeting under the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) was held in Ergneti. Ambassador Guenther Baechler, Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus, and Kestutis Jankauskas, Head of the European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM), co-facilitated the proceedings...

Vienna, 4 April 2017 –OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings Madina Jarbussynova brought the 17th high-level conference of the Alliance against Trafficking in Persons to a close today by urging all participants to adopt a regional and multi-stakeholder response to better combat child trafficking and secure the best interests of all children, regardless of status or background.