News and press releases

On 6 December 2016, the OSCE Mission to Moldova hosted a roundtable discussion in Chisinau to discuss the use of cluster policy to spur economic development at the regional level in the Republic of Moldova. The event was held in the context of the recently approved Cluster Development Concept for the Republic of Moldova...

Parliamentary hearings on the economic component of Armenia’s foreign policy were held on 9 December 2016 in Yerevan with the support of the OSCE Office in Yerevan...

A five-day training course on mentoring for trainers of Tajik political party representatives, with the aim of further advancing women’s participation in the political life, concluded on 9 December 2016. The event, organized by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan, concluded with the drafting of action plans...

OSCE Mission to Montenegro organized a workshop for municipal gender focal points in Montenegro on 8 and 9 December 2016 in Podgorica. The event provided an opportunity for representatives of municipalities, civil sector and the Ministry for Human and Minority Rights to meet and discuss the draft of the analysis on gender mainstreaming at the local level...

In Donetsk region the SMM recorded a similar number of ceasefire violations between the evening of 9 December and the evening of 10 December compared with the previous reporting period, and fewer on 11 December. In Luhansk region the Mission recorded fewer ceasefire violations between the evening of 9 December and the evening of 10 December compared with the previous reporting period, but more on 11 December. The SMM followed up on reports of shelling in Donetsk city, Dokuchaievsk, Hryhorivka and Zhovte. The Mission continued to monitor the disengagement areas in Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske, but was restricted in its access. The SMM monitored four border areas currently outside government control...

BERLIN, 12 December 2016 – OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier in a statement today said he considered the elections that took place in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia on 11 December 2016 to be “an important step to settle the continued political crisis in the country.” Steinmeier noted that the International Election Observation Mission under the aegis of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights found in its statement, as presented today in Skopje, that the election proceeded without major incidents...

The annual OSCE-supported Youth Legal Forum concluded on 10 December 2016 at the Kazakh Humanities and Law University (KAZGUU) in Astana. This year’s two-day event focused on the limits to restricting freedom of expression and distribution of information on the Internet, in recognition of the International Human Rights Day...

SKOPJE, 12 December 2016 – The 11 December parliamentary elections in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia were competitive and an essential step in resolving two years of deep political crisis, but took place in an environment characterized by widespread public mistrust in institutions and the political establishment, international election observers concluded in a preliminary statement released today...

COPENHAGEN, 12 December 2016 – In response to this weekend’s terrorist attacks near a football stadium in Istanbul and at a Coptic Christian cathedral complex in Cairo, OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Christine Muttonen (MP, Austria) issued the following statement...

BERLIN/VIENNA, 11 December 2016- Chairperson-in-Office Frank-Walter Steinmeier together with Secretry General Lamberto Zannier condemned in the strongest terms the acts of terrorism that hit Istanbul on 10 December 2016 and Cairo on 11 December 2016. They extended their condolences to the families and friends of the numerous victims and wished a speedy recovery to those that got injured. Steinmeier and Zannier expressed their solidarity with Turkey, an OSCE participating State and Egypt, an OSCE Partner for Co-operation...

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region compared with the previous reporting period. The Mission continued to monitor the disengagement areas in Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske and was restricted in its movement.* The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines and others missing from assigned areas. It monitored repair works to electric power lines between Avdiivka and Yasynuvata. It monitored the situation of civilians at entry-exit crossing points. The SMM monitored one border area currently outside government control...

COPENHAGEN, 10 December 2016 – Leaders of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s human rights committee today marked Human Rights Day with calls for a greater commitment to fundamental freedoms and basic rights across the OSCE area...

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region compared with the previous reporting period...

HAMBURG, Germany, 9 December 2016 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today condemned the murder of journalist Martin Kok who was shot dead near Amsterdam yesterday evening...

“In the wake of the current confrontation between Russia and the West, will the nations of Europe govern their interactions by rules and principles, as the signatories of the Helsinki Final Act hoped, or by the conjuncture or clash of national interests?” This was the leading question of a study conducted by the OSCE Network of Think Tanks and Academic Institutions presented at a side event of the OSCE Ministerial Council in Hamburg on 8 December 2016.

HAMBURG, 9 December 2016 – The protection of human rights defenders is essential for OSCE participating States to realize their human dimension commitments in practice, Michael Georg Link, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) said today at the close of the 23rd OSCE Ministerial Council, in advance of international Human Rights Day on 10 December...

An OSCE-supported three-day training seminar for police officers on psychological profiling techniques to be used when policing large-scale events concluded in Astana, Kazakhstan on 9 December 2016...

A two-day conference- Women Promoting Dialogue and Reconciliation- organized by the OSCE Mission in Kosovo and the OSCE Mission to Serbia concluded on 9 December 2016 in Prishtinë/Priština. The conference gathered prominent women from politics, civil society, academy and media who comprise the “Follow Us” initiative from Prishtinë/Priština and Belgrade, as well as alumni of the OSCE Dialogue Academy...

Young policy advisors from six OSCE participating States developed their policy-making skills at two training courses organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) in Poland and Sweden in November and December 2016, respectively.

An OSCE-supported week-long training seminar for the Border Guard Service under the National Security Committee concluded on 9 December 2016 in Astana, Kazakhstan, with the aim of helping officials better communicate with their colleagues and before large audiences...

An OSCE-supported Human Rights Calendar was presented at Ukraine’s Ministry of Education and Science during the joint OSCE-Council of Europe event on 9 December 2016 in Kyiv...

HAMBURG, Germany, 8 December 2016- A team of students from the University of Ljubljana today won first prize in a regional OSCE competition under the “Peer-2-Peer (P2P): Challenging Extremism” initiative...

HAMBURG, Germany, 8 December 2016- Youth participation and youth mainstreaming in security were in focus at a side event co-organized today on the margins of the 23rd OSCE Ministerial Council in Hamburg by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Co-operation of Spain and the OSCE Chairmanship’s three Special Representatives on Youth and Security. Taking part were many youth activists from civil society and OSCE youth focal points...

The SMM recorded a similar number of explosions in Donetsk region compared with the previous reporting period, but fewer ceasefire violations over all...

HAMBURG, Germany, 8 December 2016 – On the first day of the 23rd OSCE Ministerial Council, the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier addressed delegations at a side event on the crisis in and around Ukraine. The minister was briefed by his Special Representative in Ukraine and to the Trilateral Contact Group, Martin Sajdik, and the Chief Monitor of the Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), Ertuğrul Apakan, on the state of play...

HAMBURG, Germany, 8 December 2016- We, the Heads of Delegation of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair countries – Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov, Secretary of State of the United States John Kerry, and Foreign Minister of France Jean-Marc Ayrault- remain fully committed to a negotiated settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict...

The final report by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on Belarus’s 11 September 2016 parliamentary elections recommends a comprehensive review of the legislation in line with international obligations and standards for conducting democratic elections, and ensuring

HAMBURG, Germany, 8 December 2016 – Frank-Walter Steinmeier, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and German Foreign Minister, today opened the 23rd OSCE Ministerial Council in Hamburg, emphasizing that in stormy times a strong OSCE is more important than ever to provide an effective framework and engine for dialogue and co-operation. All 57 participating States, the vast majority of them represented by their Foreign Minister, have gathered in Hamburg for this two-day meeting which is the culmination of Germany’s 2016 OSCE Chairmanship...

On the occasion of the International Human Rights Day on 10 December 2016, the OSCE Centre in Bishkek in co-operation with the Human Rights Advocacy Centre held a roundtable discussion on the results of their monitoring of court hearings, with the aim of analysing the findings and collecting recommendations from participants, which included representatives of state structures, civil society and international organizations...

HAMBURG, 8 December 2016 – Addressing the foreign ministers of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s 57 participating States and other dignitaries today, Parliamentary Assembly President Christine Muttonen (MP, Austria) said that a strong OSCE is needed to help to improve the security situation across North America, Europe and Central Asia. She stressed that the PA stands ready to do its part working for a more effective organization, noting that OSCE parliamentarians can help mobilize the political will needed for real results...

An international conference on modern policies and approaches to prevent and combat corruption took place on 8 December 2016 in Astana, Kazakhstan...

Hamburg, 7 December 2016 – In his capacity as Chairperson-in-Office of the OSCE, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier today attended the closing session of the Parallel Civil Society Conference, held in Hamburg on 6 and 7 December just ahead of the Ministerial Council meeting. During the two-day event, organized by the OSCE-wide NGO coalition “Civic Solidarity Platform” more than 100 civil society representatives discussed and adopted concrete recommendations directed at the OSCE, its Institutions, field presences and participating States. The participants also adopted a “Hamburg Declaration” that calls for protecting and expanding civil society space.

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region compared with the previous reporting period...

BELGRADE, 7 December 2016 – Two Supreme Court of Cassation judges, Radmila Dragičević Dičić and Snežana Andrejević, journalist Tamara Skrozza, and Novi Pazar State University professor Senad Ganić received the OSCE Mission to Serbia’s Person of the Year Award at a ceremony today in Belgrade...

Some 76 school secretaries at primary and secondary schools in Herzegovina-Neretva Canton, as well as representatives of the Canton’s Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports and Education Inspectorate completed a three-day workshop organized by the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina on 7 December 2016 in Mostar, with the aim of enhancing co-operation in education on multiple levels...

The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), in co-operation with the University of Banjaluka’s Faculty of Political Science, on 6 December 2016 organized a conference in Banjaluka highlighting the problems facing the country’s marginalized communities...

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...

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and in Luhansk region compared with the period between the evenings of 3 and 4 December. It continued to face restrictions of its movement in the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske. The SMM’s freedom of movement was restricted on four occasions elsewhere. The SMM followed up on reports of damage to civilian infrastructure. The Mission continued to note queues at entry-exit checkpoints on both sides of the contact line. The SMM monitored one border crossing area not controlled by the Government. It facilitated and monitored repair works in Krasnyi Lyman and Orikhove...

HAMBURG, Germany, 6 December – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today called on the authorities in Turkmenistan to release journalist Azatlyk Khudayberdy Allashov, who works for the Turkmen Service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL)...

HAMBURG, Germany, 6 December 2016 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today welcomed a swift decision by Tajikistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to reinstate accreditation to six Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) correspondents in the country.юю

BIHAĆ, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 6 December 2016 – The engagement of young people in creating more a tolerant environment and becoming empowered to counter violent extremist views among their peers has been emphasized as a priority at a two-day Youth Summit, that concluded today in Bihać...

The OSCE Presence in Albania and the Ministry of Defence held a ceremony on 6 December 2016, marking the completion of a joint project to destroy hazardous military chemicals. The Head of Presence, Ambassador Bernd Borchardt, Defence Minister Mimi Kodheli and representatives of OSCE participating States that have funded the project attended the event that took place at the Port of Durrës...

The OSCE Presence in Albania, on 6 December 2016 in Tirana, concluded a series of events held throughout the year with Albanian judges and prosecutors with the aim of raising their awareness on alternatives to custody as a part of a project by the OSCE Presence to support the rehabilitation and reintegration of offenders...

Civil society and community groups dedicated to countering intolerance against Muslims strengthened their ability to monitor and report hate incidents during a workshop organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on 5 and 6 December 2016 in Warsaw. Bringing

BISHKEK, 6 December 2016 – On the occasion of the International Day of Human Rights, the OSCE Centre in Bishkek, in co-operation with the Ombudsman of Kyrgyzstan, supported the production of a theatre play, I Have a Right! for children from social care homes in the Bishkek and Chui provinces...

SARAJEVO, 6 December 2016 – The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina is participating in the global White Ribbon Campaign, as part of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, which recognizes the positive role men have in preventing violence against women...

In Donetsk region the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations between the night of 2 December and the evening of 3 December compared with the previous reporting period, and fewer on 4 December. In Luhansk region the Mission recorded fewer ceasefire violations on both 3 and 4 December compared with the previous reporting period. It continued to face restrictions of its movement in the disengagement areas in Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske, as well as in other areas. The SMM followed up on reports of a civilian casualty in Horlivka and damage to civilian infrastructure in Luhanske and Horlivka. The Mission continued to note long queues at entry-exit checkpoints on both sides of the contact line. It facilitated and monitored repair works near the Donetsk water filtration station. It monitored two border areas not controlled by the Government. In Kherson the SMM noted a calm situation at the administrative boundary line between mainland Ukraine and Crimea...

WARSAW / STRASBOURG, 5 December 2016 – European human rights officials today expressed serious concern over legal amendments passed last week in the Polish Sejm that could undermine the right to freedom of assembly if they become law...

VIENNA, 5 December 2016 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today expressed concern about a recent ruling by a Spanish judge to stop the daily newspaper El Mundo from publishing a story on an investigation into the tax affairs of soccer professionals...

The implementation of the Aarhus Convention in the context of recent constitutional and legal developments in Armenia was the theme of a workshop held by the OSCE office in Yerevan on 2 December 2016 in co-operation with Armenia’s Ministry of Nature Protection and the Centre of Economical-Legal Analysis (CELA)...