News and press releases

BISHKEK, 30 September 2014 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today welcomed a decision by the Norwegian Data Protection Authority (DPA) responding to the Armed Forces’ illegal registration of nine investigative journalists...

Many Roma in Ukraine are facing even greater challenges due to the current conflict in the country, says a report released by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on 29 September 2014 during the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting in Warsaw.

The SMM continued to monitor the situation in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, where it observed and received reports of shelling in a number of locations, including Shchastya and Donetsk city. In Kharkiv the SMM observed a pro-Ukrainian unity rally which culminated in the removal of a statue of Lenin from one of the city’s central squares...

SARAJEVO, 29 September 2014 – The 27th International Steering Committee meeting of the Decade of Roma inclusion 2005- 2015, the first event organized under the Decade Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, started today in Sarajevo...

BISHKEK, 29 September 2014 – Representatives of Ukrainian and Russian journalists’ unions condemned the killing, beating and detention of journalists in the zone of armed conflict in eastern Ukraine in a meeting organized by OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović on 26 September in Vienna...

The 13th edition of the Ethno Jazz Festival, one of the largest cultural events in Moldova, took place on 25-28 September 2014 in Chisinau, Balti and Tiraspol, supported by the OSCE Mission to Moldova and other local and international partners...

KYIV, Ukraine, 29 September 2014 – The OSCE Project Co-ordinator jointly with the Social Policy Ministry of Ukraine, today launched, in Kyiv, a project aiming to support social business models as a way to tackle the urgent challenges of trafficking in human beings...

OSCE Mission to Montenegro, in co-operation with the Governmental Office for co-operation with NGOs, organised a two-day workshop for the newly established Council for NGO Development s on 25 and 26 September in Podgorica...

On the occasion of the adoption of a new resolution by the United Nations Human Rights Council on the issue of safety of journalists, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović said: “This is an important step forward toward a proper safeguard of journalists’ safety against all forms of attacks and violence. It reiterates and reinforces previous statements made by several national and international bodies. It is urgent that States take note of this resolution and adopt all the measures and decisions to promote a safe and enabling environment for media and journalists, as well as ensure accountability for all those involved in these unacceptable acts.”...

KHUJAND, 29 September- A three-day workshop hosted by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan on investigative techniques to tackle money-laundering and corruption-related crimes will take place from 29 September to 1 October 2014 in Khujand...

A roundtable discussion titled “Development of NGOs – current situation and perspectives” was organized by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro and the Interior Ministry on 25 September 2014 in Podgorica...

ASTANA, 29 September 2014. – A two-day regional workshop on countering the smuggling of goods began today in Astana.

Two incidents involving explosions occurred in Kharkiv on 25 September; the SMM visited both sites. The first explosion occurred in the Komintern district at 02:30hrs at the office of a lawyer who is also an independent candidate in the legislative elections as well as a pro-unity activist. The police confirmed that the explosion resulted from an RPG...

New York, September 26, 2014- On the margins of the UN-General Assembly in New York, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Swiss Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter launched a discussion on how to overcome the crisis of European security that has deepened in the face of the crisis in and around Ukraine. At today’s informal meeting attended by more than 25 foreign ministers and representatives of around 35 OSCE participating States as well as representatives of partner States and security organizations, Burkhalter sketched out three avenues towards reconsolidating European security as a common project and invited participants to outline their views on how best to proceed.

KYIV, 26 September 2014- The Trilateral Contact Group of senior representatives of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office held a video conference on 25 September with representatives of self-proclaimed entities in Donetsk.

The SMM continued to monitor the situation in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions focusing on the implementation of the provisions of the Minsk Protocol/Memorandum, noting, in particular, intense shelling around the airport in Donetsk city...

KYIV, 26 September 2014- We can confirm that we accepted an invitation by the Ukrainian side for SMM monitors to observe Ukrainian and Russian military officers in Soledar today in their preliminary talks...

VIENNA, 26 September 2014 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today urged authorities of the United Kingdom to re-launch a criminal investigation into the murder, 13 years ago of investigative journalist Martin O’Hagan...

An OSCE-supported publication “International standards for independent and effective judiciary” was presented in Skopje to a group of judges, prosecutors, and attorneys, on 26 September 2014...

COPENHAGEN, 26 September 2014 – The first in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Helsinki +40 seminar series has concluded in Moscow, with participants assessing the present role of the OSCE, including how the Organization is addressing the crisis in Ukraine...

Seven representatives from Turkmenistan’s ministries and law-enforcement bodies participated in an OSCE-organized study visit on anti-corruption and anti-money laundering mechanisms to Latvia that took place from 23 to 25 September 2014 in Riga...

TURKMENBASHI, 26 September 20014 – 105 cadets at the Navy Institute of the Defence Ministry of Turkmenistan attended an OSCE-organized course on maritime border security and port management procedures and mechanisms that concluded in Turkmenbashi today.

DUSHANBE, 26 September 2014 – A ten-day regional Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) course level 1, facilitated by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan concluded in Dushanbe today...

Ombuds institutions and national human rights institutions are playing an increasingly active role in investigating grievances of personnel in the security sector, said participants in a side event at the OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting in Warsaw on 26 September 2014.

New York City, 25 September 2014 – The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group (Ambassadors Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, James Warlick of the United States of America, and Pierre Andrieu of France) met with Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian and Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov this week at the United Nations General Assembly. The Co-Chairs were joined by the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk.

The SMM continued to monitor the situation in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions focusing on the implementation of the provisions of the Minsk Protocol/Memorandum. In Kyiv, in a large demonstration, protesters threatened the authorities with a “New Maidan” after the Central Election Commission refused to register members of the “Volya” party for the upcoming parliamentary elections...

SARAJEVO, 25 September 2014 – OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina renewed its Memorandum of Understanding with the Central Election Commission of BiH in Sarajevo today...

CHISINAU, 25 September 2014 – Sixteen officers of the Moldovan armed forces today successfully completed an OSCE-supported training course on the physical security and stockpile management of small arms, light weapons and conventional ammunition...

COPENHAGEN, 25 September 2014 – Kent Harstedt (MP, Sweden), the Special Co-ordinator of the short-term OSCE observer mission for Ukraine’s parliamentary elections, has met with Ukraine’s Charge d’Affaires in Moscow to discuss opportunities for Ukrainian citizens in Russia to participate in the upcoming vote...

The OSCE Centre in Bishkek supported the participation of the Kyrgyz delegation at the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting 2014, in Warsaw, Poland, on 23- 24 September 2014...

To assist OSCE participating States in ensuring a human rights based approach in the return of victims of human trafficking, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) released a publication containing guidance in this area on 25 September 2014 at a side event during the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting in Warsaw.

Twenty towns/municipalities in Serbia received vehicles to support the work of Joint Mobile Teams for Roma Inclusion at a ceremony in Belgrade on 16 September 2014...

The SMM observed the situation in Donbas, with a particular focus on implementation of the provisions of the Memorandum signed on 19 September in Minsk. It also continued to monitor the situation of IDPs...

KAMENSK-SHAKHTINSKY, Russian Federation. The Observer Mission (OM) is operating at full capacity. Cross-border traffic flows remained steady at both Border Crossing Points (BCPs) although the total number of border-crossings has slightly decreased. Similar to the previous week, more people left the Russian Federation (RF) for Ukraine at the two observed BCPs. Regular local and long-distance bus connections are now operating between cities in the RF and the Luhansk region. The OM observed a significant increase in minivan traffic at both BCPs and again considerable numbers of persons in camouflage clothing crossing the border. Supporters of the so-called ‘Novorossiya’ advised OSCE observers to return to their home countries...

BISHKEK, 24 September 2014 – The OSCE Centre in Bishkek is hosting a three-day training course on ”Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation” for representatives from the national agencies of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan and OSCE field operations in Central Asia in Bishkek...

COPENHAGEN, 23 September 2014 – As the international community supports a diplomatic solution in Ukraine, the humanitarian impact of the crisis must not be overlooked, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly's Mehmet Sevki Kulkuloglu told a gathering of international human rights experts in Warsaw...

WARSAW, 24 September 2014 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today called on the Russian authorities to carefully address proposed changes to legislation on media ownership requirements...

Students from 21 high schools in Skopje learn about privacy, personal data protection, and how to combat online hate speech through an OSCE supported project, from September to December 2014...

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) presented its 2014 Background Paper on the Death Penalty in the OSCE Area at the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting in Warsaw on 24 September 2014.

BAKU, 24 September 2014- The OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Baku has awarded two civil society organizations in Azerbaijan, working in the field of disaster risk reduction, with grants under the Civic Action for Environment and Security (CASE) Programme...

The urgent need for enhanced protection of human rights defenders was the focus of a side event organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human (ODIHR) on 23 September 2014, during the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting in Warsaw.

The SMM noted a number of instances of artillery fire in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The SMM on 21 September met the leader of an irregular armed group – a self-styled Cossack commander – in Pervomais’k (70km north-west of Luhansk city). He insisted on being told in advance of any future SMM visit to territory controlled by him, saying the SMM’s security could not be guaranteed otherwise. The “Lugansk People’s Republic” (“LPR”) has previously told the SMM that the “commander” in question is not under the command or control of the “LPR”. (See Daily Report 139/2014)

COPENHAGEN, 23 September 2014-- The first in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Helsinki +40 series of international seminars aimed at fomenting reform of the OSCE takes place this Thursday, 25 September, in Moscow...

The SMM continued to monitor the full range of issues within its mandate, with a particular focus on compliance with the provisions of the memorandum signed on 19 September in Minsk. It also observed rallies in Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk and Odessa against the Russian Federation’s policy towards Ukraine...

TASHKENT, 22 September 2014 – An OSCE-organized workshop on a National Risk Assessment of money laundering and terrorism financing for officials from 15 different ministries and agencies involved in the implementation of anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism standards in Uzbekistan took place today in Tashkent...

WARSAW, 22 September 2014 – OSCE participating States have to focus on the most vulnerable in particular if their efforts to defend human rights are to effectively promote security, speakers said at the opening of the OSCE Human Dimension Meeting in Warsaw today...

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) and the office of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) presented their Handbook on Observing and Promoting the Participation of National Minorities in Electoral Processes at a side event on the first day of the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting in Warsaw on 22 September 2014.

COPENHAGEN, 22 September 2014 – OSCE parliamentarians will observe next month’s parliamentary elections in Ukraine and lead the short-term OSCE observer mission...

BAKU/BUDAPEST, 22 September 2014 – The OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Baku, in co-operation with the Interior Ministry of Hungary is supporting a five-day visit to Hungary, which starts today, by representatives of Azerbaijan’s government and civil society working on preventing and combatting human trafficking...

KYIV, 21 September, 2014 –We welcome the Memorandum of 19 September 2014 on concrete steps to be taken to de-escalate the situation in eastern Ukraine...