News and press releases

The SMM observed more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with 11 and 12 June. The Mission conducted crater analysis and observed damages to civilian houses caused by shelling. The SMM continued to monitor the withdrawal of weapons. It facilitated adherence to the ceasefire to enable repairs to infrastructure. The SMM noted long queues at entry-exit points along the contact line and monitored a border area not controlled by the Government. The SMM noted that the power supply of its repeater in Donetsk city, needed for the operation of remote monitoring equipment, had been reconnected. The Mission faced three restrictions to its freedom of movement.*...

VIENNA, 14 June 2016 – Preventing and responding to the terrorist radicalization of youth north and south of the Mediterranean was in focus of the OSCE Mediterranean Contact Group meeting held today in Vienna...

COPENHAGEN, 14 June 2016 – A report and draft resolution drawing connections between economic and environmental concerns with the broader security environment of the OSCE area will be taken up by members of parliament at the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s 25th Annual Session, being held in Tbilisi, Georgia, from 1 to 5 July...

BIJELJINA, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 14 June 2016 – The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), in co-operation with the German Embassy in Sarajevo, organized a conference on the role of local communities in economic development bringing together over 80 mayors, leaders of development agencies, local entrepreneurs and government officials who discussed current economic trends and their implications for the local economy...

During her visit to Kosovo from 7 to 10 June 2016, the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities Astrid Thors focused on education, implementation of the framework of language rights and access to justice. The High Commissioner continues to urge for the adoption of the Strategy for the

VIENNA, 14 June 2016 – Criminal defamation provisions protecting heads of foreign states infringe on media’s right to report on issues of public interest, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović said today as she presented a set of recommendations on the issue...

The SMM observed overall fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region both on 11 and 12 June as compared to 10 June, although the level of violence remained high, in particular in the Avdiivka-Yasynuvata area. The SMM recorded a sharp increase in the number of ceasefire violations in Svitlodarsk and Horlivka on the night of 10 June. In Luhansk region, the SMM observed a similar number of ceasefire violations on the night of 10 June – compared to the previous night and fewer during the remainder of the reporting period – compared to 10 June. On both sides of the contact line, the Mission conducted crater analysis and observed damages to civilian houses caused by shelling. The SMM noted a newly-constructed “LPR” position north of the Siverskyi Donets river at Stadnytsia Luhansk bridge and a newly-constructed Ukrainian Armed Forces checkpoint in Maiorsk. The SMM facilitated and monitored adherence to the ceasefire, and facilitated the transportation of a patient at the Stanytsia Luhanska bridge for medical care. In Kyiv, it monitored the “Equality march”, which passed off peacefully. Armed “DPR” members kept the power supply to SMM’s repeater in Donetsk city disconnected and the SMM faced one additional restriction on its freedom of movement, in a border area not controlled by the Government...