News and press releases

TIRANA, 24 March 2015- About 6,300 police officers across Albania will be trained on their role in the electoral process during a series of training courses which started today in Tirana and will run to the end of April. The training, which is organized by the OSCE Presence in Albania, in partnership with the Albanian State Police, and with the support of the Central Election Commission and the General Prosecutor’s office, comes ahead of the 21 June local elections...

Domestic and international human rights instruments to fight discrimination were the focus of a one-day workshop organized for lawyers and human rights defenders by the OSCE Office in Yerevan, in co-operation with the Council of Europe and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, on 20 March 2015 in Yerevan.

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 that fighting continued in areas around the Donetsk airport and Shyrokyne, east of Mariupol...

COPENHAGEN, 24 March 2015 – The Chair of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions, Isabel Santos (MP, Portugal), today criticized the continued official targeting of civil society organizations in Russia, exemplified by the fine levied against the Sakharov Center this week...

The OSCE Centre in Bishkek hosted a co-ordination meeting of representatives of different Kyrgyz agencies on 18 March 2015, with the aim of securing the support of state institutions and civil society for establishing a platform for action to implement the 2013-2016 National Programme against Human Trafficking...

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 that fighting continued in areas around the Donetsk airport and Shyrokyne, east of Mariupol.

BELGRADE, 23 March 2015 – OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić today expressed his concern over an increase in fighting in southeast Ukraine and urged all sides to respect the ceasefire...

KYIV, 23 March, 2015- The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission has observed intensified fighting in and around the village of Shyrokyne in Donetsk region which has led to further deaths and injuries, as well as displacement and damage to infrastructure...

Forty police officers, who completed a training programme on diversity, hate crimes and domestic violence, collected their certificates in a ceremony on 23 March 2015 in Tirana. The event, hosted by the OSCE Presence in Albania and the Dutch Embassy, was attended by the Head of the Presence, Ambassador Florian Raunig, Dutch Ambassador Dewi van de Weerd, and General Director of the Albanian Police Artan Didi...

The OSCE Centre in Bishkek is supporting the participation of the Kyrgyz delegation in the Anti-corruption Network for Eastern Europe and Central Asia (ACN) of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) plenary meeting on 23-24 March 2015 in Paris, France...

The SMM monitored 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 artillery and mortar fire in a number of locations...

Kamensk-Shakhtinsky, 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). The OM continued to observe a number of persons in military-style clothing crossing the border in both directions...

VIENNA, 20 March 2015 – “Water is an important topic for the OSCE – it can be a source of conflict, just as water co-operation can be a tool for conflict prevention,” said the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić on the eve of World Water Day...

OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine donated to country’s State Emergency Service equipment for underwater survey and clearance operations at a ceremony in Odesa on Thursday, 19th of March 2015. Six special dive suits, four diver communication sets and two hydroacoustic stations will help Ukrainian humanitarian deminers better deal with threats posed to civilians by explosive ordnance in coastal waters, rivers and lakes...

STRASBOURG/VIENNA/WARSAW – 20 March 2015 – The most effective way to counter hate speech is to reinforce the values of democracy and human rights that it threatens, the heads of three intergovernmental human rights institutions said today in a joint statement on the eve of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination...

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 sporadic artillery and mortar fire in a number of locations.

The OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Ambassador Madina Jarbussynova, emphasized the positive role that comprehensive training can play in preventing human trafficking in conflict and post-conflict environments during a 19 March 2015 address at Italy’s Center of Excellence for Stability Police Units (CoESPU) in Vicenza...

ASTANA, 20 March 2015 – Current trends in international terrorism and the prevention of youth involvement into the violent extremism and radicalization were among the topics of an OSCE-supported international roundtable discussion, which took place today in Astana, Kazakhstan...

SUMMARY On 19 March 2015 at 07:10hrs (Moscow time), a Russian convoy arrived at the Donetsk Border Crossing Point (BCP). A total of 81 vehicles were checked by the Russian border guard and customs services. All the vehicles had crossed back into the Russian Federation by 16:07hrs on 19 March...

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 that fighting continued in areas around Donetsk airport, Horlivka and Shyrokyne, east of Mariupol...

On 18 and 19 March 2015, the Head of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, Ambassador Jean-Claude Schlumberger, visited the Radio Television of Kosovo (RTK) and the Independent Media Commission (IMC) and met with the representatives of the executive bodies of those two media institutions...

Human rights compliant responses to the phenomenon of foreign terrorist fighters were the focus of an expert workshop organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) from 17 to 19 March 2015 in Warsaw.

SARAJEVO, 19 March 2015 – Improving living standards of Roma and ensuring their full access to social, economic and political life throughout South East Europe was in focus at the 10th Regional Meeting of Focal Points on Roma in OSCE Field Operations, held today in Sarajevo...

KYIV, 19 March 2015 – Ending her four-day visit to Kyiv, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today said that the current crisis in and around Ukraine continues to negatively influence free media and journalists’ safety in the country...

The OSCE Programme Office in Astana supported the first meeting of the interdepartmental working group established with the aim to develop standards of social services for victims of human trafficking that took place in Astana on 19 March 2015...

GENEVA, Switzerland, 18 March 2015- The thirty-first round of the Geneva International Discussions has just been concluded. It turned out to be very difficult due to divergent views and approaches of participants on various issues, including on certain agenda items. As part of the review of the security situation, the participants commented on the “Treaty on Alliance and Integration” signed today by Moscow and Tskhinvali. The Co-Chairs regretted that such a development took place on the same day as this round, thus creating a difficult climate in the discussions.

BELGRADE, 18 March 2015 – The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić, and the Secretary General Lamberto Zannier, condemned the horrific terrorist attack in Tunis today, and expressed their deepest condolences to the families and relatives of the victims...

COPENHAGEN, 18 March 2015 – OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Ilkka Kanerva (MP, Finland) today issued the following statement on the one-year anniversary of the illegal annexation of Crimea, Ukraine by the Russian Federation:...

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 that fighting continued in areas around the Donetsk airport and Shyrokyne, east of Mariupol...

DUSHANBE, 18 March 2015 – Decision-making models of leadership and situational leadership theory were discussed at the OSCE Border Management Staff College in Dushanbe from 9-18 March 2015...

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 that fighting continued in areas in and around the Donetsk airport and in areas to the east of Mariupol.

GENEVA, Switzerland, 17 March 2015- Today in Geneva, the Co-Chairs of the Geneva International Discussions (GID) held their regular bilateral consultations with all participants...

ALMATY, 17 March 2015 – The transition from analogue to digital broadcasting, the new technological platforms for the distribution of audio-visual content and the business challenges in the digital environment are the focus of an OSCE-supported international conference that began today in Almaty, Kazakhstan...

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* – directly observed fighting in and around the Donetsk airport and in the areas to the east of Mariupol. The SMM visited Debaltseve and Vuhlehirsk...

SARAJEVO, 16 March 2015- The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina hosted today a meeting of the Strategic Committee for Weapons, Ammunition and Explosive Ordnance of BiH, chaired by the BiH Defence Minister Zekerijah Osmic, focusing on the necessity to accelerate the process of disposal of surplus ammunition and upgrading the safety and security infrastructure of storage sites...

On 15 March 2015 at 08:11hrs (Moscow time), a Russian convoy arrived at the Donetsk Border Crossing Point (BCP). A total of 43 vehicles were checked by the Russian border guard and customs services. All the vehicles had crossed back into the Russian Federation by 18:55hrs on 15 March.

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 that fighting continued in areas around the Donetsk airport and Shyrokyne, east of Mariupol. At the Donetsk airport, the SMM observed that bodies of Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers were being recovered.

On 13 March 2015 at 15:14hrs (Moscow time), a Russian convoy arrived at the Donetsk Border Crossing Point (BCP). A total of 24 vehicles were checked by the Russian border guard and customs services. The Observer Mission (OM) was not aware of this convoy coming as it was not announced in advance. All the vehicles had crossed back into the Russian Federation by 00:02hrs on 14 March.

The Head of the Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine, Ambassador Ertugrul Apakan, thanked all 57 OSCE participating States for their continued support for the Mission, following their consensus decision of 12 March 2015 to extend the Mission’s mandate to 31 March 2016.

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 that fighting continued in areas around the Donetsk airport and in Shyrokyne, east of Mariupol...

SARAJEVO, 13 March 2015 – The role and importance of gender equality in improving human security was in focus at today’s closing conference of Gender Equality Week 2015 held at the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH)...

Cyber terrorism as a new cyber threat was the focus of a conference organized by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro, United States Embassy and the Judiciary Training Centre, which took place on 12-13 March 2015 in Budva...

COPENHAGEN, 13 March 2015 – The Chair of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Committee on Political Affairs and Security, U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, today expressed concern regarding the Russian Federation’s complete suspension of work under the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE)...

BAKU, 13 March 2015 – The OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Ambassador Madina Jarbussynova today praised the government for its progress in the fight against human trafficking...

VIENNA, 13 March 2015 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović condemned the intimidation of independent journalists in Crimea following the detention today of Natalya Kokorina, a journalist and editor with the news portal Crimean Centre for Investigative Journalism...

COPENHAGEN, 13 March 2015 – The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Special Representative on South East Europe, Roberto Battelli (MP, Slovenia), today expressed concern about increasingly turbulent political developments in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia...

BELGRADE, 12 March 2015 – Today’s decision by the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna to extend the mandate of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) and allocate necessary resources confirms the support and commitment of all 57 participating States to implementing the Minsk agreements and to the Mission, said OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić...

VIENNA, 12 March 2015- The Council of Europe and OSCE need to further capitalize on their strengths to effectively address the challenges facing their member countries, said Didier Reynders, Belgium’s Foreign Minister and current chair of the Council’s Committee of Ministers, in his address to the OSCE Permanent Council on 12 March 2015.

Complying with human rights standards and effectively countering terrorism were the focus of training organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) from 9 to 12 March in Warsaw.

COPENHAGEN, 12 March 2015 – The third event in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Helsinki +40 seminar series took place on 11 March in Stockholm, with experts, policy-makers, ambassadors and OSCE parliamentarians considering how the European security architecture, and the OSCE’s inclusive security community in particular, can better prevent conflicts and respond to new threats...