News and press releases

Countering the use of the Internet for terrorist purposes was the focus of a two-day regional workshop organized in Malta on 2-3 December 2015 by the OSCE in co-operation with the International Institute for Justice and the Rule of Law (IIJ)...

Armed individuals guarding heavy weapons in Yurivka fire into the air as SMM tries to approach

The SMM recorded a relatively low number of ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, some of which were assessed to be training activities...

BELGRADE, 5 December 2015 – The 22nd OSCE Ministerial Council took place in a good, constructive and frank atmosphere, laying solid foundations for continuing dialogue on addressing Europe’s security challenges, said OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić earlier today after the two-day meeting drew to a close...

The SMM recorded ceasefire violations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, some of which were assessed to be training activities...

TIRANA, 4 December 2015- Secretaries General of the Western Balkans Parliaments, who gathered in Tirana on 3 and 4 December, agreed on the need to further increase public participation in legislative processes. They also stressed that parliaments and civil society should work together to oversee the public consultation on draft legislation at all stages...

DUSHANBE, 4 December 2015 – Fifteen instructors from the national training customs institutions of Afghanistan, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan and Tajikistan concluded today a ten-day train-the-trainer course in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, organized jointly by the OSCE Border Management Staff College and the World Customs Organization’s (WCO) Programme Global Shield (PGS)...

BELGRADE, 4 December 2015 – Only through dialogue can enduring and sustainable solutions be found to the crisis in and around Ukraine, said OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić on Thursday as he joined his Special Representative to the Trilateral Contact Group and the OSCE’s Chief Monitor in addressing a side event on the margins of the 22nd Ministerial Council in Belgrade...

Empowering women politicians in Tajikistan was the topic of an OSCE-supported roundtable discussion, held on 3 December 2015 in Dushanbe, for representatives of the country’s political parties...

MEREFA, Ukraine, 4 December 2015– A first group of 12 Ukrainian emergency personnel officers completed a four-day training course today on operation of an information management system for mine action (IMSMA), organized by the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine at the State Emergency Service training facility in Kharkiv oblast...

On 4 December 2015 in Astana, Kazakhstan, the OSCE Programme Office held the last in a series of five training seminars for defence lawyers, organized in co-operation with the Almaty Bar Association, on the novelties of the country’s criminal justice codes...

Recent developments and strategic priorities in fostering police integrity in Montenegro was the topic of the OSCE-supported seminar held on 1 December 2015 in Podgorica, which brought together 50 participants from state institutions, civil society, media and international organizations...

BELGRADE, 3 December 2015- A diplomatic process that explores the common problems of European States carefully, confidentially and systematically is needed to overcome the current divisions and uncertainties over security, concludes the final report of the Panel of Eminent Persons on European Security as a Common Project, presented today on the margins of the 22nd OSCE Ministerial Council in Belgrade...

BELGRADE, 3 December 2015 – The 22nd OSCE Ministerial Council began today in Belgrade with a call for greater efforts to rebuild consensus on European security and renewed dialogue based on full respect for OSCE principles and commitments...

BELGRADE, 3 December 2015- Today, the Panel of Eminent Persons has published its Final Report, one year after the Panel was launched jointly by Switzerland, Serbia and Germany at the OSCE Ministerial Council in Basel...

BELGRADE, 3 December 2015- During the Ministerial Meeting of the OSCE Troika on the margins of the 22nd Ministerial Council in Belgrade, the Foreign Ministers of the current, previous and incoming OSCE Chairmanships- Serbia, Switzerland and Germany, respectively – reaffirmed their full support to the political process within the Trilateral Contact Group and the work of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), emphasizing that the Minsk agreements should be fully implemented. This implies upholding the ceasefire and moving forward with the political process...

The SMM recorded some explosions in Donetsk region, including in the area around Donetsk airport, and small-arms fire in Luhansk region. Its freedom of movement was restricted four times in areas not controlled by the Government, resulting, in one instance, in not being able to reach the respective border regions...

An OSCE-supported two-day seminar on the protection of human rights and application of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) for 60 judges working in the relocated administrative courts from Donetsk and Luhansk regions concluded in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, today 3 December 2015....

BELGRADE, 3 December 2015 – Far-reaching action by the international community is needed to deal with a world that “sometimes seems to be spiralling out of control,” OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Ilkka Kanerva (MP, Finland) said today in an address to foreign ministers assembled in Belgrade at the 2015 OSCE Ministerial Council...

The first press centre within the State Public Prosecution Office was opened in Skopje today, 3 December 2015, with the support of the OSCE Mission to Skopje. The centre aims to assist the Public Prosecution in developing its capacity to establish a sustainable and transparent approach towards the media and the general public...

BELGRADE, 3 December 2015- 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, State Secretary for European Affairs of France Harlem Desir – remain united in our commitment to mediating a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict...

ALMATY, Kazakhstan, 3 December 2015- Best practices in transboundary water resources management with an emphasis on dam safety will be presented and analysed during a two-day regional conference beginning today in Almaty, Kazakhstan...

The OSCE Programme Office in Astana concluded a series of three training seminars on gender mainstreaming for representatives of local and regional authorities on 3 December 2015 in Kyzylorda, southern Kazakhstan...

WARSAW, 3 December 2015 Marking the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) Michael Georg Link called on OSCE participating States to strengthen their efforts in addressing prejudice and intolerance against people with disabilities.

BELGRADE, 2 December 2015- The work of the OSCE’s field operations in South-east Europe in promoting regional co-operation is important for sustaining stability in the region, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić said today on the margins of the 22nd OSCE Ministerial Council in Belgrade...

BELGRADE, 2 December 2015 – The elected leadership of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly met today in Belgrade alongside OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic for a discussion on the crisis of migrants and refugees and possibilities for strengthening the OSCE’s response...

The OSCE Presence in Albania and the National Co-ordinator against Corruption launched on 2 December 2015 a renewed public information campaign under the slogan Show the Face of Corruption. The newest component of the campaign is a series of lectures on anti-corruption in around 30 high schools and universities across the country, which will run until 18 December. In addition, posters and banners are put on display in towns across the country and also on several of the most visited online portals...

DUSHANBE, 2 December 2015 – Ten officers from the Afghan Border Police and 14 officers from the Tajik Border Troops completed a two-week train-the-trainer course today jointly organized by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan and the EU-funded Border Management Northern Afghanistan (BOMNAF) project...

TASHKENT, 2 December 2015- Effective criminal justice responses to terrorism, based on the rule of law, were the focus of a two-day seminar organized by the OSCE Secretariat’s Action against Terrorism Unit, in co-operation with the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan, which concluded today in Tashkent...

The SMM recorded some small-arms fire and explosions in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, including in the area around Donetsk airport...

KYIV, 1 December 2015 –The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine is pleased to announce the expansion of its Youth Contact Group (YCG) dialogue initiative to Lviv, Kharkiv and Kramatorsk over the next few months as part of its mandate to facilitate dialogue in order to reduce tensions and promote normalization of the situation...

Kamensk-Shakhtinskiy, Russian Federation. The Observer Mission (OM) continues to operate 24/7 at both Border Crossing Points (BCP). The overall cross-border traffic decreased at both BCPs. A forty-fifth Russian Convoy crossed at the Donetsk BCP...

The SMM noted a calm situation around Donetsk airport with the exception of one firing incident observed on the outskirts of the airport. The SMM registered several explosions, heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire in limited locations.

SKOPJE, 1 December 2015- OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier encouraged political leaders to continue commitment to the ongoing political process and timely implementation of the Przino Agreement in full and good faith, as he concludes discussions today in Skopje...

The participation of national minorities in public life and promoting their access to education were among the main topics of discussion during the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) Astrid Thors’ visit to Kyrgyzstan from 24 to 26 November. In Bishkek, Thors exchanged views on a

During a visit to the Luhansk region on 29 November 2015, the Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) Ertugrul Apakan, said Forward Patrol Bases established by the Mission greatly enhance monitoring along the Contact Line in eastern Ukraine...

PRAGUE, 30 November 2015 – During her official visit to the Czech Republic, OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Madina Jarbussynova, praised the country’s authorities for collaborating with civil society to provide support for victims of modern-day slavery.

The OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine and Yaroslav Mudryi National Law University organized an autumn school in Kharkiv from 23 to 25 November 2015, bringing together law professors from different universities across Ukraine to learn about the current trends in criminal law and teaching methodologies...

The SMM noted a calm situation around Donetsk airport except one incident where the SMM observed shell damaged houses in a north-western suburb of Donetsk city, close to the airport. The SMM registered several explosions, heavy-machine-gun and small-arms fire in a number of other locations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions...

BELGRADE, 30 November 2015 – The OSCE Mission to Serbia, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) and the civil society organization Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights (YUCOM) will monitor on 1 December 2015 the elections of prosecutors to the Serbia’s State Prosecutorial Council (SPC)...

From 27 to 29 November 2015, some 23 students and alumni from the Chisinau School of Advanced Journalism (CSAJ) acquired key skills in investigative and data journalism at a three-day intensive workshop, organized in Vadul-lui-Vodă by the OSCE Mission to Moldova and the local NGO Independent Journalism Centre...

The SMM recorded ceasefire violations at and around Donetsk airport, and to a lesser extent in a number of other locations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The SMM continued to note partial non-compliance in relation to the withdrawal of heavy weapons and Addendum-related weapons. Its freedom of movement was restricted three times in areas not controlled by the Government, resulting, in one instance, in an inability to reach the Ukraine-Russian Federation border*.

BISHKEK, 28 November 2015- The OSCE Centre in Bishkek, in co-operation with Public Associations “IRET” and “Alga” concluded today a two-day Annual Youth Conference in Bishkek.

The fourth international forum on the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) for legal professionals, co-organized by the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine, was held on 27 November 2015 in Lviv...

SARAJEVO, 27 November 2015 – Addressing online content that incites violence was in the focus of a two-day OSCE-supported roundtable discussion that concluded today in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH)...

WARSAW, 27 November 2015 Michael Georg Link, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), praised yesterday’s decision by the Moldovan parliament to declare 27 January the Day of Commemorating the Victims of the Holocaust, following a government proposal...

YEREVAN, 27 November 2015 – A national debate contest on the role of the OSCE in ensuring security was launched today in in Yerevan, marking the 40th anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act...

The OSCE Programme Office in Astana supported the last in a series of four training seminar for social workers on proper care and social services for victims of human trafficking on 27 November 2015 in Astana, Kazakhstan...

The SMM recorded a total of 58 explosions in specific areas in Donetsk and Luhansk region. It also conducted monitoring activity for preparation of demining work. The SMM continued to observe long queues of civilian vehicles waiting at government checkpoints at the contact line and at border crossing points between Ukraine and the Russian Federation...

COPENHAGEN, 27 November 2015 – A one-week training course for female water professionals from Central Asia, jointly organized by the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) and the OSCE Gender Section, in co-operation with the Women’s Water Initiative, concluded today in Copenhagen...