News and press releases
News and press releases from the OSCE's global activities.
Spot Report by OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM): SMM evacuates forward patrol base in Shchastia due to mortar shelling
Publishing date: 31 August 2016
Between 20:55 and 21:00 on 30 August, whilst at the SMM forward patrol base in government-controlled Shchastia (20km north of Luhansk), an SMM patrol comprising five SMM staff members and a paramedic heard four shots of under-barrel-grenade-launcher (GP-25) fire approximately 1km south of their position...
69th IPRM meeting takes place in Ergneti
Publishing date: 31 August 2016
ERGNETI, 31 August 2016- The 69th meeting under the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) took place today in Ergneti. The meeting was co-facilitated by Kęstutis Jankauskas, the Head of the European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM), and Ambassador Guenther Baechler, the Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus...
Special Co-ordinator Harstedt continues pre-electoral work in Belarus, meets with President Lukashenko
Publishing date: 31 August 2016
COPENHAGEN, 31 August 2016 – OSCE PA Vice-President Kent Harstedt (MP, Sweden), who is serving as Special Co-ordinator to lead the OSCE’s short-term observer mission for the 11 September parliamentary elections in Belarus, continued his pre-electoral work this week by meeting with President Alexander Lukashenko, Chairman of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of Belarus Mikhail Myasnikovich, and Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Makei...
OSCE/ODIHR delivers training on human rights compliant policing of assemblies to Ukrainian police
Publishing date: 31 August 2016
International human rights standards, the key principles of assembly policing, the planning and decision making model, communication and accountability were the focus of a three-day training event organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) in co-operation with the European Union Advisory Mission to Uraine (EUAM) between 29 and 31 August 2016 in Kyiv.
Statement by OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Germany’s Foreign Minister Steinmeier ahead of the Informal OSCE Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Potsdam
Publishing date: 31 August 2016
BERLIN, 31 August 2016 – OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Germany’s Foreign Minister Frank Walter Steinmeier today issued the following statement ahead of the 1 September Informal Meeting of the OSCE Ministerial Council in Potsdam...
Podgorica workshop focuses on strengthening cross-border co-operation to address irregular migration-related crimes in Western Balkans
Publishing date: 31 August 2016
PODGORICA, 31 August 2016 – A two-day workshop aimed at strengthening cross-border co-operation in addressing irregular migration-related crimes in the Western Balkans opened today in Podgorica bringing together policy-makers and law enforcement officials from relevant bodies in the region as well as representatives of international and regional organizations...
Weekly Update from the OSCE Observer Mission at Russian Checkpoints Gukovo and Donetsk based on information as of 30 August 2016
Publishing date: 31 August 2016
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 slightly decreased at both BCPs...