News and press releases

CHIŞINĂU, 26 June 2015- The election observers deployed by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) will present their preliminary statement of findings and conclusions on the 28 June second round of local elections in Moldova at a press conference in Chişinău on Monday...

International standards, national legal frameworks and good practices on effective investigation of torture cases were discussed at an OSCE-supported conference held on 26 June 2015 in Yerevan in commemoration of the United Nations’ International Day in Support of Victims of Torture...

DUSHANBE, 26 June 2015- Twenty-five officers from Tajikistan border enforcement agencies successfully completed the OSCE training on phytosanitary and veterinary control systems at the border checkpoints in Dushanbe today...

An OSCE-supported Summer School on Integrated Water Resources Management concluded on 26 June 2015 in Almaty, Kazakhstan, with a roundtable discussion on this topic involving experts, researches and representatives of international organizations from the region and beyond...

An OSCE-supported workshop on the role of public hearings as a tool for enhancing public participation in environmental decision-making took place on 26 June 2015, in Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan...

On 25 June 2015 at 06:50hrs (Moscow time), a Russian convoy arrived at the Donetsk Border Crossing Point (BCP). A total of 47 vehicles were checked by the Russian border guard and customs services. All the vehicles had crossed back into the Russian Federation by 16:31hrs on 25 June...

VIENNA, 25 June 2015- Current security challenges in the OSCE area and how the Organization can use its comprehensive toolbox as well as co-operation with other international and regional organizations to address them were the focus of the 2015 Annual Security Review Conference, which took place in Vienna on 23-25 June...

The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the implementation of the Minsk agreements”. The SMM, based on its monitoring – which was restricted by third parties and by security considerations* – observed continued violence in a number of places in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, in particular, at and around the Donetsk airport...

COPENHAGEN, 25 June 2015 – The crisis in and around Ukraine, the plight of migrants and refugees, arms control, climate change and minority rights are among a diverse array of critical security issues on the agenda at the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Annual Session next month...

The OSCE Mission to Montenegro continues to support the country’s Ministry of Justice in implementing key policies, bearing in mind the successful co-operation and results achieved in line with the host country’s needs, said the Head of the Mission, Ambassador Janina Hrebickova, during a meeting with Justice Minister Zoran Pazin...

Head of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro, Ambassador Janina Hrebickova, met on 22 June 2015 Montenegrin Deputy Prime Minister Dusko Markovic to discuss further engagement of OSCE and its continued support to Montenegro in the implementation of its key strategic national priorities...

LISBON, 25 June 2015 – The OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Ambassador Madina Jarbussynova, today underscored the need to improve victim identification at an international seminar on key challenges in the fight against modern-day slavery...

Elections experts from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) met with electoral stakeholders in Sarajevo on 24 and 25 June 2015 to present recommendations from the final report on the 12 October 2014 general elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Serbia’s 2015 OSCE Chairmanship, the OSCE’s Conflict Prevention Centre and the OSCE Missions to Bosnia and Herzegovina and to Montenegro participated in the fifth 2BS Security Forum on "The Future Perspectives of a Global Security Architecture" held from 4 to 6 June 2015 in Budva, Montenegro...

Effective responses based on the rule of law in countering terrorism were the focus of a two-day seminar organized in Skopje by the OSCE in co-operation with the National Academy for Judges and Public Prosecutors on 24-25 June 2015...

The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the implementation of the Minsk agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by third parties and security considerations*. The situation at and around the Donetsk airport remained tense. The situation remained relatively calm in Mariupol and Shyrokyne. The overall situation in the Luhansk region remained tense...

WARSAW, 24 June 2015- Michael Georg Link, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), today called on the Armenian authorities to respect the right to freedom of peaceful assembly of those taking part in a peaceful protest in central Yerevan...

ERGNETI, 24 June 2015- On 24th June 2015, the 56th meeting under the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) took place in Ergneti, co-facilitated by Kęstutis Jankauskas, the Head of the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM), and Ambassador Angelo Gnaedinger, the Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-office for the South Caucasus...

OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities Astrid Thors encouraged the authorities of Kazakhstan to take the country’s ethnic and linguistic diversity into account in planned reforms, known as the “100 Concrete Steps”, in areas including education, the civil service, and promotion of national

PODGORICA, 24 June 2015 – The OSCE Mission to Montenegro today concluded a three-day training course on gender responsive budgeting for members of the Municipal Gender Focal Point Network...

KAMENSK-SHAKHTINSKIY, Russian Federation. The Observer Mission (OM) continues to operate 24/7 at both BCPs. The overall cross-border traffic increased at both Border Crossing Points (BCPs)...

BONN, Germany, 23 June 2015 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today strongly condemned the recent killing of the Polish journalist Łukasz Masiak. Mijatović also expressed her sincere condolences to Masiak’s family and colleagues...

COPENHAGEN, 23 June 2015 – Nearly 300 lawmakers from more than 50 states in the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe will return to the OSCE’s Finnish birthplace next month to mark the 40th anniversary of the Organization’s founding and address some of today’s most pressing security issues at the 2015 Annual Session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly...

The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the implementation of the Minsk agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by third parties and security considerations*. The situation at and around the Donetsk airport was tense. The SMM observed ceasefire violations in several locations in the Luhansk region...

BONN, Germany, 23 June 2015 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today said journalists’ safety must be ensured at all times, following recent incidents and coercive actions by police against journalists covering public protest in Yerevan, Armenia...

The final report by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on the 29 March 2015 presidential election in Uzbekistan recommends a comprehensive review of the legal framework well in advance of the next election to bring it in accordance with OSCE commitments and other international obligations and standards for democratic elections...

Intensified fighting was observed in Donetsk and near Mariupol, but the situation in Luhansk remained relatively calm over the weekend. The SMM visited Ukrainian Armed Forces and “DPR” weapons holding areas and observed presence of heavy weapons in areas in violation with Minsk withdrawal lines...

COPENHAGEN, 22 June 2015 – The migrant crisis in the Mediterranean is a challenge not just for the countries of that region but for the whole of Europe, concluded the Chair of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions, Isabel Santos (MP, Portugal), at the close of her four-day visit to Rome, Lampedusa, Catania and Mineo on Sunday...

BELGRADE, 22 June 2015– The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić today appointed Ambassador Martin Sajdik (Austria) as his new Special Representative in Ukraine and in the Trilateral Contact Group. He follows Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini (Switzerland) who, having fulfilled this assignment for one year, expressed her wish to step down...

TIRANA, 22 June 2015 – While voters were offered a distinct choice from among a range of candidates and fundamental freedoms of expression and assembly were generally respected, the politicization of institutions involved in the 21 June local elections in Albania undermined the effective administration of the process, international observers concluded in a statement issued today...

VIENNA, 22 June 2015 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today criticized the detention of an Al Jazeera reporter by the German authorities on the basis of an Egyptian arrest warrant, calling for his immediate release...

TASHKENT, 22 June 2015 – A two-day training course on improving judicial responses to human trafficking, organized by the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan, in co-operation with the Lawyers’ Training Centre under the Uzbek Justice Ministry, was launched today in Tashkent...

LAMPEDUSA, Italy, 20 June 2015 – The Chairperson of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions, Isabel Santos (MP, Portugal), is in Lampedusa, Italy today, where she is meeting with migrants, refugees and officials at the Lampedusa First Aid and Reception Center, as well as with representatives of NGOs working to help alleviate the human crisis in the Mediterranean...

This report is for the media and the general public. The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the implementation of the Minsk agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by third parties and security considerations*. In the area around Donetsk airport, the SMM observed more ceasefire violations than in recent days. A fuel shortage was observed in and around Donetsk city.

The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the implementation of the Minsk agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by third parties and security considerations. Luhansk region remained tense, with the SMM observing shelling in several areas. The area around Donetsk airport continues to be relatively calm, though heavy fighting was observed by the SMM in Shyrokyne. The SMM observed a 41-truck convoy being unloaded in Luhansk...

VIENNA, 19 June 2015 – The mandate of the OSCE Observer Mission at the Russian checkpoints Gukovo and Donetsk has been extended by three months to 30 September 2015, following a consensus decision taken by all 57 OSCE participating States yesterday...

KYIV, 19 June 2015- A roundtable discussion to promote co-operation between the Ukrainian authorities and Kyiv-based embassies and consulates to prevent human trafficking was held today with the support of the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine...

Promoting greater political participation for migrants was the focus of a conference organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), in co-operation with the European University Institute (EUI), on 18 and 19 June 2015 in Florence.

TIRANA, 19 June 2015- The international observers deployed by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) and the Council of Europe's Congress of Local and Regional Authorities will present their preliminary statement of findings and conclusions on the 21 June local elections in Albania at a press conference in Tirana on Monday...

BUDAPEST, 18 June 2015 – Political leaders have to take decisive action to counter anti-Semitism in Hungary, Michael Georg Link, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), and Rabbi Andrew Baker, Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office on Combating Anti-Semitism, said today in Budapest...

VIENNA, 19 June 2015- Two months on the OSCE’s #WeCooperate campaign is drawing to a close, having reached an audience of nearly three million people with the message that co-operation is the path to peace and security...

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo concluded in Vushtrri/Vučitrn, on 19 June 2015, a two-week advanced training on investigative interviewing for 20 Kosovo Police officers...

BUDAPEST, 19 June 2015 – Michael Georg Link, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, ahead of Saturday’s World Refugee day, called today on countries in the OSCE region to ensure the dignified treatment and human rights of all individuals wanting to cross borders...

An OSCE-supported training seminar to improve communication channels between the courts and the public took place on 19 June 2015, in Astana, Kazakhstan...

WARSAW, 18 June 2015 – Michael Georg Link, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), expressed his shock and sorrow at the shooting in a historic black church in the city of Charleston, South Carolina last night that left nine people dead, and welcomed statements by police officials there that they were investigating a possible racial motivation behind the crime...

The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the implementation of the Minsk agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by third parties and security considerations. The situation at and around Donetsk airport was relatively calm. The SMM facilitated the transportation of water supply equipment and a local ceasefire to fix water supply problems...

On 18 June 2015 at 07:05hrs (Moscow time), a Russian convoy arrived at the Donetsk Border Crossing Point (BCP). A total of 50 vehicles were checked by the Russian border guard and customs services. All the vehicles had crossed back into the Russian Federation by 15:05hrs on 18 June...

VIENNA, 18 June 2015 – With attacks on journalists rising at a rapid pace and the proliferation of propaganda growing, journalism itself is under attack, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović told the Permanent Council today as she reported on recent media freedom developments in the OSCE region...

BISHKEK, 18 June 2015- The OSCE Centre in Bishkek in co-operation with the Ministry of Interior of the Kyrgyz Republic and the Kyrgyz State Juridical Academy under the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic today opened a two-day international conference in Bishkek focusing on the protection of witnesses and victims of organized crime in the criminal justice process...

ASTANA, 18 June 2015 – An OSCE-supported training seminar to build the capacity of the court system’s press services in public outreach at the central and regional levels began today in Astana...