News and press releases

OSCE Mission publishes public opinion survey results on BiH citizens’ perception of elections and electoral processes The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) published its survey findings today following a state-wide survey on citizens’ perception of elections in BiH. The survey aimed to

The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina supported a “National Cyber Incident Classification” workshop for South-East and Eastern Europe in Banja Luka on 22 and 23 September 2022. The workshop was organized by the OSCE’s Transnational Threats Department (TNTD), in co-operation with the Republika Srpska Ministry of Scientific and Technological Development and the Higher Education and Information Society.

The OSCE Moscow Mechanism rapporteur Professor Angelika Nussberger presented findings collected in the ‘Report on Russia’s Legal and Administrative Practice in Light of its OSCE Human Dimension Commitments’ to the OSCE Permanent Council on 22 September 2022.

VIENNA, 22 September 2022 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Teresa Ribeiro, today again strongly denounced the continued infringement on the right to freedom of expression and media freedom by the Russian authorities.

As part of its ongoing multi-year program to combat the illicit trafficking of cultural property, from 12 to 14 September in Edinburgh, Scotland, the OSCE Transnational Threats Department led a workshop comprised of subject matter experts to develop a first of its kind interactive training program for OSCE participating States’ law enforcement and border security personnel.

OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media concludes visit to North Macedonia

Issues of improving investment climate and strengthening of regulatory basis in the export management area were addressed during an OSCE- online seminar in Ashgabat on 21 and 22 September 2022. The OSCE Centre in Ashgabat organized this event to present best practices of the OSCE participating

On 22 September 2022, the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Law Faculty of the Sarajevo University launched the second Media Law School – this time focussed on freedom of expression on social networks.

VIENNA, 21 September 2022- The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Teresa Ribeiro, expressed her concern today over the new conditions La Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional (LFP), the Spanish football authority, has introduced for the broadcasting of football matches for the 2022-2023 season.

Following a series of youth essay and art competitions organized by the OSCE and United Nations in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2020 and 2021 to mark the 25th anniversary of the Dayton Peace Agreement and the country’s commitment to Agenda2030, the two organizations have gathered a selection of essays and artwork in a publication presenting young peoples’ reflections on peace in BiH. The publication, entitled The Peace Young People Wish to Build in BiH, was presented today in Sarajevo on the occasion of the International Day of Peace, and was followed by a conversation with young authors.

On 21 September 2022, the OSCE Mission to BiH and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), in co-operation with the FBiH Centre for the Education of Judges and Prosecutors, launched a two-day training for judicial officials and members of law enforcement on the protection of human rights in counter-terrorism investigations.

On 19 and 20 September, the Balkan Asset Management Interagency Network (BAMIN), supported by the OSCE Transnational Threats Department (TNTD) and the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA), held online training sessions on the management of seized and confiscated vehicles. The training focused on both national and cross-border aspects of managing these vehicles.

COPENHAGEN/WARSAW/VIENNA, 20 September 2022 – The OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs Zbigniew Rau, OSCE Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid, OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Margareta Cederfelt and Matteo Mecacci, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, condemned the plans to hold “referenda” on Ukraine’s occupied territories.

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo supported the Office of Good Governance in presenting on 19 September 2022 the new Strategy for Advancing the Rights of the Roma and Ashkali Communities. The Strategy 2022-2026 focuses on five priority areas: education, employment and social welfare, health, housing and

SARAJEVO, 20 September 2022- Today in Sarajevo, the OSCE Mission to BiH held a high-level launch of a much-anticipated five-year project on Enhancing Intelligence-Led Policing (ILP) to Combat Serious Security Threats and Crimes in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). OSCE representatives introduced the key project aims and activities focused on advancing the ILP model through close collaboration and partnership among BiH law enforcement agencies. The participants also established a co-ordination group on ILP and stressed the importance of the project for modernizing policing.

Prishtinë/Priština, 19 September 2022 – The prosecution of terrorism offences has proved challenging around the world, and Kosovo is no exception. Nonetheless, judicial institutions have to make sure they adjudicate these cases fairly, effectively and in full respect of human rights standards, concludes the latest thematic report published by the OSCE Mission in Kosovo today.

WARSAW/VIENNA, 19 September 2022 – OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau, and OSCE Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid unequivocally condemn the sentencing of OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) mission members Maxim Petrov and Dmytro Shabanov to 13 years in prison as a result of so-called “legal proceedings” and call for the immediate release of all three OSCE mission members in detention.

WARSAW/VIENNA, 16 September 2022 – OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau, and OSCE Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid welcomed the ceasefire reached between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, following reports of armed clashes and causalities on the border between the two countries...

From 9 to 12 September, the OSCE Mission to Montenegro facilitated a visit of the Chairperson of State Election Commission, Nikola Mugoša, to Sweden where he observed the 2022 Swedish parliamentary, regional and municipal elections. The Chairperson also visited the Swedish Parliament, the Election Authority, Stockholm City Hall and polling stations.

VIENNA, 15 September 2022 — The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Teresa Ribeiro, today denounced the lengthy prison sentence handed down to investigative journalist Denis Ivashin in Belarus.

VIENNA/WARSAW, 15 September 2022- OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Foreign Minister of Poland, Zbigniew Rau, and OSCE Secretary General, Helga Maria Schmid, today unequivocally condemned the so-called “legal proceedings” launched against two national mission members of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) and the continuing detention of one other national mission member. The three national mission members have been detained for almost five months.

The International High-Level Conference on “International and Regional Border Security and Management Cooperation to Counter Terrorism and Prevent the Movement of Terrorists” will take place in Dushanbe, Tajikistan on 18-19 October 2022. This two-day conference is co-organized by the Government of

The OSCE Mission concluded a series of workshops for all of eight Kosovo Police regions on ways and methods to prevent crimes through community involvement. The workshops held in Prishtinë/Priština, Gjilan/Gnjilane, Gjakovë/Djakovica, and Mitrovicë/Mitrovica South from 1 to 13 September involved

The impact that war has on the safety and wellbeing of children was at the heart of today’s Forum for Security Co-operation meeting. This topic was introduced for the first time for discussion by the Forum by the Belgian Chair, who will lead the Forum’s discussions until the end of 2022.

On 13 September, the Personal Representatives of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office concluded a country-visit to Georgia. The purpose of the visit was to assess and share information on best practices and challenges pertaining to tolerance and non-discrimination...

Sarajevo, 14 September 2022 – The launch of the EU, UN, OSCE, and Council of Europe supported project “Empowering Trust and Cohesion in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Communities’’ was officially marked today at a kick-off event held in Sarajevo.

WARSAW/VIENNA, 13 September 2022 – OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau, and OSCE Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid call for an immediate ceasefire following reports of armed clashes along the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

An OSCE-organized training course on open source intelligence in criminal investigations took place in Ashgabat from 13 to 16 September 2022. The aim of the course was to share experiences in combating drug trafficking using modern open source tools, including social media and other internet

From 6 to 9 September, Ambassador Alena Kupchyna, the OSCE Co-ordinator of Activities to Address Transnational Threats (TNTD), and Fejzo Numanaj, the Acting Head of the TNTD Action against Terrorism Unit, participated in the United Nations Global Congress of Victims of Terrorism in New York.

The prevalence of violent misogynistic attitudes across the ideological spectrum of violent extremism, and the risks related to overlooking this issue in policymaking, is the focus of a new OSCE policy brief published today in Vienna.

PRAGUE, 9 September 2022 – Expanding the use of green technologies, reducing reliance on fossil fuels and energy diversification are vital to security, stability and post Covid-19 sustainable economic recovery across the OSCE region, said participants of the concluding meeting of the 30th Economic and Environmental Forum (EEF) of the OSCE in Prague. The forum focused on promoting security and stability in the OSCE area through sustainable economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

On September 9, 2022, the OSCE Border Management Staff College (BMSC) concluded a four-week Staff Course in Vienna, Austria. The enterprise represented the 33rd such offering conducted by the College since its founding in 2009 and the second held outside its home campus in Dushanbe, Tajikistan.

OSLO, 8 September 2022 – Valiant Richey, OSCE Special Representative for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, concluded his four-day visit to Norway today. He highlighted the country’s progress made in establishing specialized institutions to protect child victims of crime and noted a need for update of the anti-trafficking strategy and improved national co-ordination of victim assistance.

From 6 to 8 September, the OSCE Transnational Threat Department’s Border Security and Management Unit organized a working visit to Georgia, with the support of the Georgian Revenue Service and Ministry of Internal Affairs. This visit was an opportunity for members of the Platform, which focuses on preventing and countering corruption at the border, to improve their skills and learn from the Georgian experience.

The OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek and the OSCE Transnational Threats Department piloted a new training-of-trainers course on requesting electronic evidence across borders on 5 to 8 September in Kyrgyzstan. The course, developed jointly by the UNODC, Interpol, and the OSCE with the financial support from the European Union, is based on the United Nations Practical Guide on Requesting Electronic Evidence Across Borders.

SKOPJE, 7 September 2022 – State bodies for equality in the region play an important role in the fight to create more equal societies, free of discrimination.  These bodies in North Macedonia and throughout the region face numerous challenges in relation to resources, inter-institutional

SARAJEVO, 7 September 2022- The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) welcomes BiH accession to the European Union (EU) Civil Protection Mechanism.

From 5-9 September, the OSCE, jointly with the Institute for Teaching and Port Research of the Normandy Business School (IPER) is conducting a week-long training for female professionals of the ports of Baku (Azerbaijan), Aktau and Kuryk (Kazakhstan), Constantza (Romania) and the Maritime Agency of Georgia at the port of Le Havre, France. The event is part of the hybrid course, OSCE-IPER Women in Port Management.

WARSAW, 7 September 2022 – Following verdicts against a number of human rights defenders in Belarus in a trial held behind closed doors, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) expressed alarm about the increasing repression of human rights defenders in the country as well as the lack of fair trial guarantees.

The OSCE Forum for Security Co-operation remains the forum in which to discuss security issues, despite Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine emphasised Deputy Permanent Representative Fiel Vanthemsche as he outlined Belgium’s priorities as FSC Chair during today’s opening session.

The April 2022 presidential election in France was competitive and pluralistic, and fundamental freedoms were respected. Voters were provided with ample and diverse information enabling them to make an informed choice among the 12 candidates, and the election administration worked effectively and

VIENNA, 6 September 2022 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Teresa Ribeiro, today condemned the shutdown of Novaya Gazeta newspaper and reiterated her call on the Russian authorities to fully respect OSCE media freedom commitments.

LJUBLJANA, 6 September 2022 – Today marks the 10th anniversary of the Ljubljana Guidelines on Integration of Diverse Societies, a comprehensive set of guidelines established by the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) to address challenges related to managing integration processes in diverse societies.

Participants of a two-day regional conference “Countering online Child Exploitation in Southeast Europe”, organized by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro on 5 and 6 September 2022 in Budva, shared approaches and experiences and committed to improve their regional co-operation in providing an effective response to online sexual exploitation of children.

From 1 to 3 September, the OSCE Presence in Albania supported the organization of an exchange workshop in Vienna for journalists covering parliamentary affairs in Albania. The delegation consisted of nearly a dozen of journalists from different media outlets in Albania plus representatives from the

Integrating a gender sensitive and gender inclusive approach in border security and management in times of crisis and conflict was the focus of a roundtable discussion organized by the OSCE Border Management Staff College on 2 September 2022 in Vienna.

VIENNA, 1 September 2022 – In times when the OSCE is seriously tested, it is essential to rebuild mutual trust and confidence, and to demonstrate the political will to re-engage in dialogue on widely shared security concerns, said North Macedonia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Bujar Osmani today.

SOFIA, 31 August 2022- The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) today opened an election observation mission for the 2 October early parliamentary elections in Bulgaria, following an official invitation from the national authorities.

From 24 to 28 August 2022, twenty young activists from the Western Balkans gathered in Tirana and traveled to Gjirokastra to discuss, learn and explore approaches on social interaction and promote democracy, peace and security through inter-generational dialogue. Since 2017, the OSCE Youth Trail

SARAJEVO, 24 August 2022 – The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) today opened an election observation mission for the 2 October general elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina, following an official invitation from the national authorities and a needs assessment mission conducted in June this year.