News and press releases

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region compared with the previous reporting period. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it observed calm situations in each. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas and elsewhere, including near Siedove and Samiilove.* It followed up on reports of shelling at a grain production facility in Yasynuvata. The Mission saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near Netailove. It observed Ukrainian Armed Forces positions in southern areas of Verkhnotoretske. In Luhansk city the SMM saw Russian Federation flags placed alongside “LPR” flags outside certain buildings. It facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance of essential infrastructure in Vesela Hora. The SMM visited three border areas not under the control of the Government.

WARSAW, 2 December 2017 Ahead of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, marked on 3 December, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir invited participating States to establish closer partnerships with persons with disabilities and their representative organizations to jointly work towards more representative and equal societies...

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region compared with the previous reporting period, and no ceasefire violations in Luhansk region. The Mission observed damage to residential properties from shelling in Dovhe. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations inside the Petrivske disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas and elsewhere, including near Yasynuvata and Mineralne.* The SMM attempted to reach Travneve but was unable to do so due to the possible presence of mines or unexploded ordnance on the road leading to the village. It facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance of essential infrastructure in Shchastia, and near Krasnyi Lyman and Vesela Hora. The SMM visited three border areas not under government control. The Mission observed incidents at a public gathering in Kyiv.

LONDON, 1 December 2017 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Harlem Désir today concluded a three-day visit to London in which he discussed the state of freedom of expression and media freedom in the United Kingdom with a broad range of state officials, parliamentarians, stakeholders and civil society representatives.

A one-week tailored training course on business ethics and anti-corruption measures for more than 30 representatives of public sector, business community and civil society concluded on 1 December 2017 in Bishkek. The course was organized by the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) with the support of the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek to assist the Kyrgyz government and relevant anti-corruption stakeholders in developing and sustaining effective anti-corruption measures through multi-stakeholder partnerships...

A team from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) visited Yerevan from 29 November to 1 December 2017 to present the  final report of OSCE/ODIHR election observation mission for the 2 April parliamentary elections in Armenia. The report’s findings and recommendations

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. The Mission observed damage to civilian properties from shelling in Yasne. The SMM continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations inside the Petrivske disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas and elsewhere, including near Manuilivka and at a heavy weapons holding area and a permanent storage site in non-government-controlled areas. The Mission observed a weapon in violation of withdrawal lines near Bile and military-type vehicles in column formations near Buhaivka. The SMM attempted to reach Travneve but was unable to do so due to the possible presence of mines or unexploded ordnance on the road leading to the village. It facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance of essential infrastructure in Shchastia, and near Krasnyi Lyman, Vesela Hora and Novozvanivka. The SMM visited three border areas not under government control...

Four ambassadors and two military attaches representing their countries in the OSCE are the winners of the fourth White Ribbon Award in recognition of their personal commitment and achievements in promoting gender equality. The award ceremony was held on 30 November 2017, at the Hofburg in Vienna.

A two-day seminar on delimitation and demarcation practices in the OSCE area, organized by the Border Security and Management Unit (BSMU) of the OSCE Transnational Threats Department, concluded on 30 November 2017 in Minsk.

The role of judicial councils in ensuring judicial independence and accountability was the focus of a seminar in Tashkent on 29 and 30 November 2017, co-organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) and the Office of the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan.

A youth network of gender champions, composed of 45 young adults, including 15 men and 30 women, was established by the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe on 29 November 2017 in Tajikistan.

Some 40 national and international state attorneys and their deputies gathered to discuss the latest developments in the work of state attorneys at an international conference taking place from 30 November to 1 December 2017 in Belgrade.

SKOPJE, 30 November 2017 – The OSCE Mission to Skopje and the Ministry of Internal Affairs launched in Skopje today a new project aimed at reducing the risk of proliferation of weapons and of ammunition and to increase the security of existing stockpiles of small arms and light weapons...

An OSCE-supported roundtable discussion on the legislation and law enforcement practices regulating police’s work in preventing and combating domestic violence concluded on 30 November 2017 in Astana, Kazakhstan.

MINSK, 30 November 2017 – The Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in Ukraine and in the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), Ambassador Martin Sajdik, made the following statement to the press after the meeting of the TCG and its Working Groups in Minsk on 29 November 2017:

A three-day training seminar on strengthening the collaboration between police and citizens in countering Violent Extremism and Radicalization that Lead to Terrorism (VERLT), supported by the OSCE Programme Office in Astana, concluded in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on 30 November 2017.

An OSCE-supported seminar on public participation in the law-making process took place on 30 November 2017 in Astana, Kazakhstan, bringing together 25 representatives of civil society, political parties, trade unions, local government authorities and the media.

An OSCE-supported two-day training workshop on best practices for administering a risks management system at customs concluded on 30 November 2017 in Astana.

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region compared with the previous reporting period. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations near the Stanytsia Luhanska disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas and elsewhere, including in Kozatske. The SMM facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance of essential infrastructure in Shchastia, and near Krasnyi Lyman, Artema and Troitske. The SMM visited five border areas not under government control...

A one-week advanced train-the-trainer course on profiling, interviewing techniques and skills to detect forged documents for 15 Mongolian law enforcement officers, organized by the Border Security and Management Unit of the OSCE’s Transnational Threats Department (TNTD/BSMU), took place from 20 to 24 November 2017 in Ulaanbaatar.

A pilot version of a platform for reporting and recording hate incidents, which is being developed by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), was presented and discussed with representatives of Polish and Hungarian civil society organizations during meetings in Warsaw

The impact of gender equality and diversity within the judiciary and the prosecution service on the fairness of justice systems was the focus of an expert meeting organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights in Warsaw on 28 and 29 November 2017. More than 20

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 compared to the previous week. The sixty-ninth Russian convoy crossed into Ukraine and returned though the Donetsk Border Crossing Point...

MILAN, 28 November 2017 – Safeguarding human rights constitutes a key element in effectively addressing violent extremism, said OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Ad Hoc Committee on Countering Terrorism member Ana Birchall (MP, Romania) at an event in Milan today.

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region compared with the previous 24 hours. In Dovhe, the Mission heard small-arms fire assessed as aimed at its unmanned aerial vehicle. The SMM observed damage to civilian properties from shelling in residential areas in Dokuchaievsk. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations inside the Petrivske disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas and elsewhere, including at a heavy weapons holding area and a permanent storage site in non-government-controlled areas.* The SMM saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line. It facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance of essential infrastructure in Shchastia and Zolote-4, and near Krasnyi Lyman, Artema and Troitske. The SMM visited four border areas not under government control.

SARAJEVO, 28 November 2017- The 10th Annual Review Conference on Compliance with OSCE and UN Security Commitments of Bosnia and Herzegovina, gathering over 50 local and regional security experts and representatives of government institutions, international organizations and the civil society, concluded today, at Jahorina mountain...

PODGORICA, 28 November 2017- A two-day training course for 35 civil law judges on the implementation of international legal assistance in civil matters was organized by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro in co-operation with the country’s Judiciary Training Centre was held on 27 and 28 November 2017 in Podgorica...

The OSCE Mission to Montenegro, in co-operation with the parliament’s Department of Human Resources, organized a training course on managing change for parliamentary services on 27 and 28 November in Podgorica...

The importance of involving men alongside women to move forward in achieving gender equality was the focus of an OSCE-organized MenEngage expert meeting on 24 November 2017 in Vienna.

The OSCE Guidebook on Intelligence-Led Policing (ILP) was promoted in Astana, Kazakhstan, during a regional event which brought together some 30 representatives of the public security sector from Central Asian countries on 28 November 2017...

VIENNA, 28 November 2017- At a meeting of the 5+2 talks on the Transdniestrian Settlement Process in Vienna, political representatives from Chisinau and Tiraspol confirmed progress on several of the eight issues previously identified by the Sides, and made a commitment to finalize the remaining issues at the beginning of next year...

An OSCE-supported roundtable discussion on the economic empowerment and political participation of women took place on 28 November 2017 in Astana.

The sixth training course of the seventh cycle on anti-discrimination was organized for 25 employees of the state administration by Montenegro’s Ministry for Human and Minority Rights in co-operation with the OSCE Mission to Montenegro on 27 and 28 November 2017 in Bečići. This training course dealt with preventing discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity...

A five-day training course organized by the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe on risk management analysis for officers from law enforcement agencies in Tajikistan concluded on 24 November 2017...

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions between the evenings of 24 and 25 November compared with the previous reporting period. In both regions the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations between the evenings of 25 and 26 November compared with the previous 24 hours. The SMM heard from soldiers and residents that Ukrainian Armed Forces had moved into the village of Travneve on 21-22 November. Some residents of Travneve told the SMM that they had been without electricity since 16 November. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations inside the Petrivske disengagement area. It followed up on reports of a civilian casualty in Popasna and observed damage caused by shelling in Dokuchaievsk and Holmivskyi. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas and elsewhere, including at a Ukrainian Armed Forces weapons holding area. The Mission saw weapons in violation of withdrawal lines near Volnovakha. The SMM visited seven border areas outside of government control. The SMM monitored a gathering in front of the regional prosecutor’s office in Odessa...

VIENNA, 27 November 2017 – On the occasion of today’s parliamentary debate on the Media and Defamation Bill in Malta, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Harlem Désir urged the Maltese authorities to improve the Bill and bring it in line with relevant international standards.

While noting public confidence in Germany’s political and campaign finance system, the final report on the country’s 24 September 2017 parliamentary elections issued by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on 27 November 2017, recommends particular measures to

VIENNA, 27 November –The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Harlem Désir called upon Bulgarian authorities today to take urgent measures to protect journalists and the publisher of the regional news website Zov News...

SKOPJE, 27 November 2017 – Challenges to strengthening the capacity of the Public Broadcaster’s smaller community newsrooms and the way forward were the focus of an OSCE-organized roundtable discussion that took place in Skopje today...

The second and final round of training courses on the Model for Professional Development of School Management, which was organized by the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina in co-operation with the Ministry for Education, Science, Sports and Culture of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton, attended by some 80 school directors, was held during 20 to 24 November 2017 in Mostar...

Vienna, 27 November 2017 – A two-day workshop on the “Prevention of Trafficking in Human Beings in Supply Chains through Government Practices and Measures” concluded on 24 November in Geneva, Switzerland. Organized by the OSCE with the support of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and Switzerland, the workshop gathered over 50 participants, including representatives from 18 governments as well as international experts specialized in the fight against child and forced labour and human trafficking.

The Head of the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe, Ambassador Tuula Yrjölä met the Interior Minister of Tajikistan, Colonel General Rahimzoda Ramazon on 23 November 2017 to discuss areas of co-operation.

Strengthening the capacity of government officials from Kyrgyzstan to counter terrorist financing was the aim of a three-day train-the-trainers course organized by the OSCE’s Transnational Threats Department and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime's Global Programme against Money Laundering, at the OSCE Secretariat in Vienna from 25 to 27 November 2017...

VIENNA, 27 November 2017 – Local communities and businesses on both sides of the Dniester/Nistru River and across the wider region will benefit from agreements on several social and economic issues reached by the Sides in the Trandniestrian Settlement Process, said OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz, and OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger...

The OSCE Mission to Montenegro in co-operation with the Judicial Training Centre organized the second in a series of three one-day training courses on hate crime for representatives of the judiciary on 24 November 2017 in Podgorica...

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. It continued to observe armed men and armoured personnel carriers in Luhansk city centre. The SMM observed shelling damage in a residential area of Dovhe. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it recorded ceasefire violations inside the Petrivske disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas.* It facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance of essential infrastructure in Zalizne and Betmanove, as well as, reportedly, the transport of the bodies of deceased soldiers near Novotoshkivske and Sentianivka. The SMM followed up on the situation of civilians from Travneve close to the contact line.

PODGORICA, 25 November 2017- At the OSCE and UNHCR-supported High-Level Forum on Durable Solutions for Displaced Persons from Kosovo, participating institutions, including State Secretary Vukica Jelić (Podgorica), Deputy Prime Minister Dalibor Jevtić (Pristina), Deputy Director Dušan Kozarev (Belgrade) and Migration Unit Director Dejan Ivkovski (Skopje), welcomed further progress achieved in the implementation of the Action Points of the ‘Skopje Process’, and agreed to reinforce commitment to removing obstacles to finding durable solutions for the remaining displaced persons...

VIENNA / WARSAW, 24 November 2017 – Ahead of tomorrow’s International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, and the start of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, senior OSCE leaders today called on participating States to increase efforts to end this human rights violation.

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions compared with the previous reporting period. It continued to observe armed men and armoured personnel carriers in Luhansk city centre. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske; it heard an explosion near the Stanytsia Luhansk disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas and elsewhere, including near Kreminets. The SMM observed shelling damage in a residential area of Dokuchaievsk. In Luhansk the SMM observed a convoy of 16 cargo trucks marked with “Humanitarian help from the Russian Federation”. It facilitated and monitored repairs and maintenance of essential infrastructure in Betmanove. The SMM observed a calm situation in Kherson region along the administrative boundary line with Crimea. It observed groups of parishioners shout at one another outside a church in Ivano-Frankivsk...

The methodology and initial results of a study on unreported hate crimes against members of selected communities in Poland were explored by representatives of civil society, the national administration and international organizations during a meeting in Warsaw on 24 November 2017.