News and press releases

On 6 December, the OSCE Transnational Threats Department, in close co-operation with the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan, organized a fourth webinar for cadets and lecturers from the Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan in Tashkent. The purpose of this initiative is to raise awareness about key trends and developments in contemporary policing among students and staff of the Academy.

The role of the media in the regional reconciliation process is the focus of a three-day training course that started on 7 December in Budva, organized by the Regional Youth Co-operation Office (RYCO) Local Branch Office with the support of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro.

On 8 December, the OSCE Mission to Montenegro published a document Handbook on media reporting on gender-based violence against women, a guide for media professionals on how to report about gender-based violence against women and girls in line with ethical principles and standards. National TV stations, newspapers, news portals and local broadcasters in Montenegro have received copies of the handbook.

The OSCE facilitated working group meetings on youth crime prevention that brought together representatives of the Ministry of Education and Science, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Culture, Information, Sports and Youth Policy of the Kyrgyz Republic, and experts from Kyrgyz civil society.

A two-day annual meeting of “Police Persons of Trust”, organized by the Police Directorate with the support of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro and the Centre for Integrity in the Defence Sector from Norway, begun on 7 December in Budva.

OSCE early warning and conflict prevention instruments were discussed at a lecture course organized by the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat to mark the forthcoming International Neutrality Day. The Centre organized the lecture-course for 100 students and faculty from the Institute of International Relations

On 5 and 6 December, representatives of national institutions responsible for fire management and climate change from Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Mongolia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia got together in a cross-regional workshop, Wildfire Management for Enhancing Climate Resilience and Security in Skopje, North Macedonia.

Experts and legislators from Ukraine took part in a workshop on national virtual assets legislation organized by the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) in partnership with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) from 5 to 7 December, in Vienna, Austria.

How can societies become more resilient to disinformation? How does gender equality relate to radicalization and violence in the digital space? How can individuals become better equipped to navigate the complex and dynamic online universe of information? These were some of the questions at the heart of a three-day training workshop held in North Macedonia from 5 to 7 December.

DRVAR, 6 December 2022- Ambassador Brian Aggeler, Head of the OSCE Mission to BiH concluded today his visit to Canton 10 and Una-Sana Canton. Ambassador Aggeler started the visit on Monday, 5 December by meeting Mayor of Drvar Dušica Runić, one of only six female mayors in BiH.

Election experts from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) presented the final report and recommendations of the observation activity to Canada’s 20 September 2022 early federal election during a visit to Ottawa from 14 to 15 November. The ODIHR experts met with

From 29 November to 2 December, the OSCE’s Transnational Threats Department, the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe and the UNDOC Terrorism Prevention Branch organized a training course in Tajikistan on requesting electronic evidence from service providers based in foreign jurisdictions. The course, based on the United Nations Practical Guide on Requesting Electronic Evidence across Borders, was developed by the UNODC, INTERPOL, and OSCE, with the financial support of the European Union.

The April 2022 parliamentary elections in Slovenia were competitive and pluralistic. Contestants campaigned freely, and voters had a wide variety of choices across the political spectrum. During the election campaign, the freedoms of peaceful assembly and association were respected. However,

On 2 December, Head of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro Dominique Waag met with the Minister of Justice Marko Kovač.

ŁÓDŹ, 2 December 2022 — The OSCE Ministerial Council concluded in Łódź today. Taking place against the backdrop of Russia’s war against Ukraine, the meeting brought together Foreign Ministers and senior officials from across the OSCE participating States.

Meerim Abdykadyrova from the city of Cholpon-Ata, Issyk-Kul province, improving speech therapy centre and elementary school "Birinchi Mugalim"

A strong and joint commitment to strengthening efforts to prevent and eradicate trafficking in human beings, amid the worst humanitarian crisis in Europe since World War II was at the centre of a side event held on the margins of the 29th OSCE Ministerial Council in Łódź, Poland, today.

ŁÓDŹ, 1 December 2021 – Foreign Ministers and senior officials from across the OSCE region meet in Łódź today and tomorrow for the 29th Ministerial Council at the invitation of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau.

Tackling the effects of armed conflict on children was the focus of a side-event held by the Belgian Chair of the Forum for Security Co-operation, in co-operation with Italy, Norway and Poland on 1 December 2022.

Head of the OSCE Mission (Mission) to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Ambassador Brian Aggeler, visited Brčko District today. Ambassador Aggeler met key local counterparts, including Brčko District Mayor Esed Kadrić, and Deputy Mayor, Anto Domić. The Ambassador discussed political developments in

Strengthening Bosnia and Herzegovina’s capacity to counter the financing of terrorism was the topic of a four-day course, which concluded on 01 December in Sarajevo. The course was organized by the OSCE’s Transnational Threats Department, with the support of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Ambassador Brian Aggeler, Head of the OSCE Mission to BiH visited Tuzla today where he met with a broad range of local counterparts. Ambassador Brian Aggeler, Head of the OSCE Mission to BiH visited Tuzla today where he met with a broad range of local counterparts.

ŁÓDŹ, 30 November 2022 – Today, civil society representatives from across the OSCE area presented their recommendations that focused on stopping the war in Ukraine and overhauling the international security architecture at the annual OSCE Parallel Civil Society Conference held in Łódź.

On 29 November, Dominique Waag, Head of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro, had a working meeting met with Nikola Mugoša, Chair of the State Election Commission.

The importance of a gender-inclusive approach to border security was the focus of a two-day annual conference of the OSCE Gender Equality Platform in Border Security and Management, concluded on 30 November 2022 in Podgorica, Montenegro.

On 29 November 2022, the OSCE Transnational Threats Department held a workshop dedicated to updating the curriculum for law enforcement on gender-based violence (GBV) in Podgorica. This is the sixth workshop organized at the national level within the project “Enhancing Criminal Justice Capacities for Combating Gender-based Violence in South-Eastern Europe”, implemented in partnership with the OSCE Gender Issues Programme and supported by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro.

Challenges to the rule of law as well as good practices in OSCE participating States and the work of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) were discussed at an OSCE-organized online seminar that took place on 29 November 2022. The aim of the event, organized by the

29 November 2022, Sarajevo- The Press and Online Media Council in BiH, with the support of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), published the analysis of the “STOP! Hate Speech” campaign.   From 1 September to 16 October, this campaign aimed to monitor user comments across 12 BiH web

On 23 and 24 November 2022, 40 representatives from the OSCE Field Operations and other OSCE Executive Structures gathered in Istanbul to participate in a climate change and security training organized by the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities and the Berlin-based think tank, adelphi.

Citizens place the highest trust in the police (41.7%) and army (41.4%), followed by religious institutions, local governments, international organizations and the NGO sector. As many as 72.5% of citizens mostly believe that the situation in Montenegro is generally safe, while 61.4% of citizens are mostly satisfied with the police in protecting citizens’ safety. These are some of the key findings from a Perception of the Police in Montenegro survey, commissioned by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro and conducted by the Damar Agency between 7 and 15 October 2022 on a sample of 1,000 respondents.

A second opinion poll conducted in November 2022 reveals that RTCG is still the second most frequently watched TV station in Montenegro, and now perceived as more independent. In the previous survey, every fourth citizen believed that RTCG was a TV station that was under strong political influence; this perception fell from 24.9% to 8.9%. Additionally, the perception that RTCG was a TV station that "shows only one side" dropped from 16.2% to 9.3%. The perception of objectivity increased from 13.4% to 17.4% and currently ranks first. About 24 % of citizens follow RTCG on a daily basis. The majority of citizens still consider RTCG as synonym for the term ‘television’.

Some 100 law students from four institutions of higher education in Turkmenistan attended an OSCE-organized online course on the rights of suspects and defendants during all stages of criminal proceedings that took place from 14 to 18 November 2022. The OSCE Centre in Ashgabat organized the

VIENNA/WARSAW, 25 November 2022- On the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, and the start of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, OSCE leaders called on participating States to enhance efforts on the prevention and elimination of violence against women in conflict.

On 25 November, on the International Day against Violence against Women, the OSCE Mission to Montenegro joins the global “16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence” with a television campaign that encourages people to take action to prevent and combat domestic violence. This continues until 10 December, the International Human Rights Day.

To assist the Kosovo Police (KP) in enhancing internal investigations and background checks, the Mission supported a three-day study visit of five senior managers of the KP Professional Standards Division to the General Inspectorate of National Gendarmerie and France National Police in Paris.

From 21 to 25 November, the OSCE Transnational Threats Department, in close co-operation with the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek, organized a course on cryptocurrencies and Dark Web investigations at the Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic.

From 24 to 25 November, the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) and the OSCE Presence in Albania conducted a two-day regional training for representatives of civil society organizations and journalists from South Eastern Europe in Tirana, Albania. The training enhanced technical capacities and fostered discussions and knowledge sharing on the use of open data in preventing and combating corruption with a special focus on the transparency and oversight of public procurement processes.

The OSCE Mission to Montenegro continued its cooperation with Parliament in providing specialized workshops to their staff on environmental protection and gender responsive budgeting.

On 24 November 2022, the OSCE Transnational Threats Department, with the support of the OSCE Mission to Skopje, held a national workshop to update the national curriculum for law enforcement on gender-based violence (GBV) in North Macedonia.

Cryptocurrencies and virtual assets are gaining popularity around the world, and Moldova is no exception. The country actively works on tackling criminal use of cryptocurrencies and the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) has offered their expertise to assist Moldovan authorities.

THE HAGUE, 24 November 2022- “Georgia’s policies for ethnic minorities are evidence of the authorities’ efforts to shoulder their responsibilities and improve legislative and institutional frameworks. Thanks to these efforts, Georgia has been acclaimed as a forerunner among the post-Soviet countries. However, regions with predominantly ethnic minority populations continue to suffer from the lack of basic social infrastructure,” said Tamta Mikeladze, Director of Equality Policy Programme at the Social Justice Center.

Forty students from the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan and the International University for Humanities and Development completed an online course on the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and its role in the Central Asian

Enhancing efforts to implement the Women, Peace and Security agenda and assessing the situation of Ukrainian women refugees was at the centre of a two-day visit to Romania by Special Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office on Gender, Liliana Palihovici, and OSCE Senior Adviser on Gender Issues, Lara Scarpitta. 

On 22 November 2022, the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA), in partnership with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) conducted a workshop on regulating virtual assets for more than 30 experts from relevant agencies in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Some 64 representatives of financial investigation units and law enforcement agencies from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russian Federation, Serbia, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, as well as experts from international organizations attended a seminar on “Current Issues in Countering the Financing of Terrorism” held in Bishkek on 11 November.

The OSCE Transnational Threats Department launched an E-learning Course on the ‘Fundamentals of Preventing Violent Extremism and Radicalization that Lead to Terrorism (VERLT)’ on 22 November 2022.

On 21 November 2022, an OSCE Asian Partners for Co-operation Group discussion was organized in Vienna by the Swedish Chair of the Group in co-operation with the Republic of Korea to exchange experiences with the OSCE relating to confidence and security building measures with focus on the situation on the Korean Peninsula.

ASTANA, 21 November 2022 – The 20 November early presidential election in Kazakhstan took place in a political environment lacking competitiveness and, while efficiently prepared, the election underlined the need for further reforms to bring related legislation and its implementation in line with OSCE commitments to ensure genuine pluralism, observers from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) said in a statement released today.

OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Teresa Ribeiro payed an official visit to Hungary from 15 to 16 November 2022, during which she met with several government officials including Minister for Culture and Innovation János Csák, State Secretary for EU Affairs of the Ministry of Justice János Bóka, State Secretary for Security Policy and Political Director of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Trade Bunford Zsol, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Interior Bence Rétvári, State Secretary for International Communications and Relations of the Prime Minister’s Office Zoltán Kovács, as well as with Chair of the Cultural Committee of the Parliament László Pósán. The Representative also met with President András Koltay of the media regulator State Office of Media and Communications and with Director Dániel Papp of the Media Services and Support Trust Fund. During her visit, she had discussions with several journalists and representatives of civil society.