News and press releases

OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities Kairat Abdrakhmanov participated in the Third Moscow International Conference on Combating Xenophobia, Antisemitism and Racism — Protecting the Future on 22 and 23 November in Moscow. In his opening remarks, the High Commissioner highlighted that: “We

Summary In Donetsk region, the SMM recorded 612 ceasefire violations, including 32 explosions. In the previous reporting period, it recorded 609 ceasefire violations in the region. In Luhansk region, the Mission recorded 193 ceasefire violations, including 48 explosions. In the previous reporting

On the morning of 27 November, the armed formations in Luhansk region denied two SMM patrols passage to non-government-controlled areas. Both patrols were travelling from government-controlled areas. The first denial occurred at 09:10, at about 350m north of the southern edge of the disengagement

VIENNA/STOCKHOLM, 27 November 2021 — OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs Ann Linde and OSCE Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid expressed concern over the systematic and unacceptable freedom of movement impediments that the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) is currently facing in non-government-controlled areas of Ukraine, particularly in the Luhansk region. They called for the immediate removal of the restrictions, which have escalated to a new level, effectively preventing SMM’s operations.

Summary In Donetsk region, the SMM recorded 609 ceasefire violations, including 108 explosions. In the previous reporting period, it recorded 813 ceasefire violations in the region. In Luhansk region, the Mission recorded 60 ceasefire violations, including 39 explosions. In the previous reporting

As many as 89.9% of Montenegrin citizens believe that the functioning of the State Election Commission (SEC) affects the democracy of electoral processes and the trust that citizens have in the elections in Montenegro. This is one of key findings from a Survey on Public Perceptions and Confidence in Election Management Bodies in Montenegro, commissioned by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro and conducted by the Damar agency. In this regard, the Mission considers the appointment of a new SEC Chair as a matter of urgency.

A two-day national seminar on a whole-of-society approach to preventing and countering violent extremism and radicalization that lead to terrorism (P/CVERLT) concluded on 26 November 2021 in Belgrade, Serbia.

In co-operation with the Directorate for Sports and Youth, the OSCE Mission to Montenegro organized a capacity building training course for young women and men engaged in local youth services across the country from 25 to 27 November 2021.

On 25 and 26 November 2021, the OSCE Center in Ashgabat organized an online seminar on developing and introducing training courses focused on preventing and responding to domestic violence for the institutions and academies of the law enforcement bodies of Turkmenistan.

A five-day OSCE regional train-the-trainers course on cybercrime for criminal justice practitioners from the five Central Asian OSCE participating States concluded on 26 November 2021. The course aimed to provide practitioners with the knowledge and skills necessary for developing and delivering professional training courses on this topic.

On 23 November 2021, the OSCE convened the first meeting of the Multi-Agency Committee in North Macedonia, established as part of its project Enhancing Criminal Justice Capacities for Combating Gender-based Violence in South-Eastern Europe.

On 25 November, the OSCE Mission to Moldova organized an annual Donors’ Forum online for more than 100 representatives of a wide range of initiative groups and civil society organizations (CSOs) from both banks of the Dniester/Nistru River, and development partners.

At 15:00 on 25 November, an SMM patrol consisting of four vehicles arrived from government-controlled areas at about 350m north of the southern edge of the disengagement area near Zolote to travel to non-government-controlled areas. Two members of the armed formations (wearing armbands with “JCCC” written on them) denied the Mission passage, citing “orders from their superiors”. At 15:15, the patrol left and returned to government-controlled areas...

At 09:38 on 25 November, an SMM patrol consisting of two vehicles and seven people arrived from non-government-controlled areas at a checkpoint of the armed formations near the southern edge of the disengagement area near Zolote (government-controlled, 60km west of Luhansk), to travel to government-controlled areas. A member of the armed formations (wearing armbands with “JCCC” written on them) denied the Mission passage, citing “orders from his superiors”. At 09:43, the patrol left the area and proceeded to Zolote-5 (Mykhailivka) (non-government-controlled, 60km west of Luhansk)...

Summary In Donetsk region, the SMM recorded 813 ceasefire violations, including 183 explosions. In the previous reporting period, it recorded 376 ceasefire violations in the region. In Luhansk region, the Mission recorded 35 ceasefire violations, including five explosions. In the previous reporting

The OSCE Mission and the Kosovo Police launched a joint campaign against domestic violence today to raise awareness of the problem and help to prevent it more effectively.

As part of the longstanding support that the OSCE Mission to Montenegro provides to the Regional Youth Co-operation Office (RYCO), the Mission supported the organization of the final design and validation workshop on RYCO Strategy 2022–2024 from 19 to 22 November 2021.

STOCKHOLM / VIENNA / WARSAW, 25 November 2021- 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 increase their efforts and resources to combat violence against women and girls, including violence enabled by digital technology.

Today marked the seventh annual Media Development Forum, a platform for dialogue among media, state institutions and civil society organized by the OSCE Presence in Albania. This year’s forum focused on the freedom and development of media in Albania.

VIENNA, 25 November 2021 – The media freedom situation in the OSCE region has not improved since her previous report six months ago, said OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media (RFoM), Teresa Ribeiro, during the presentation of her second biannual report to the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna today.

The OSCE Centre in Ashgabat organized an online training course on multimedia journalism from 24 to 26 November 2021.

A five-day OSCE-supported study visit to Moscow for participants from Tajikistan on disaster prevention and management system concluded on 19 November 2021.

International standards on efficient energy use and best practices of Energy Service Companies (ESCO) in OSCE participating States were discussed during an OSCE-organized online seminar in Ashgabat on 23 and 24 November 2021.

KYIV, 24 November 2021 – The Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in Ukraine and in the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), Ambassador Mikko Kinnunen, made the following statement to the press after the regular meetings of the TCG and its Working Groups held through video conferencing:..

On 24 November, at 10:39, an SMM patrol consisting of two vehicles and five people arrived from Donetsk city at a checkpoint of the armed formations near Horlivka (non-government-controlled, 39km north-east of Donetsk), travelling to government-controlled areas. At the checkpoint, two visibly armed members of the armed formations denied the Mission passage, citing a “lack of permission” for the SMM to cross. At 14:54, the patrol returned to Donetsk city...

Summary In Donetsk region, the SMM recorded 376 ceasefire violations, including 230 explosions, eight of which were assessed as a live-fire training exercise outside of the security zone. In the previous reporting period, it recorded 163 ceasefire violations in the region. In Luhansk region, the

Translators and proof-readers from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Kosovo Police were trained on using computer-assisted translation software during a two-day workshop organized by the OSCE Mission to Kosovo on 18 and 19 November 2021.

On 23 November 2021, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media (RFoM) Teresa Ribeiro met with Ambassador Vesa Häkkinen to discuss current developments on media freedom and freedom of expression in Finland and the wider OSCE region. They addressed several topics, including the importance of promoting media literacy as a tool to counter dissemination of misinformation and strengthen freedom of opinion and expression. They agreed that an official visit by the Representative to Finland would be an excellent opportunity to gain first-hand insight into Finland’s experiences in media literacy.

VIENNA/SARJEVO, 24 November 2021 – Following meetings with the members of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), OSCE Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid made the following statement:

Between 09:45 and 10:00 on 23 November, an SMM patrol consisting of two vehicles and five people arrived from government-controlled areas at about 350m north of the southern edge of the disengagement area near Zolote (government-controlled, 60km west of Luhansk) to travel to non-government-controlled areas. Two members of the armed formations (wearing armbands with “JCCC” written on them) denied the Mission passage, citing “orders from their superiors”. At 10:05, the patrol left the area and proceeded towards Popasna (government-controlled, 69km west of Luhansk)...

Summary In Donetsk region, the Mission recorded 163 ceasefire violations, including 39 explosions. In the previous 24 hours, it recorded 122 ceasefire violations in the region. In Luhansk region, the SMM recorded 36 ceasefire violations, including 14 explosions. In the previous 24 hours, it

Twenty-six officers and managers of various border security and law enforcement agencies from fourteen countries across the OSCE region graduated from the fourth one-year Postgraduate Diploma in Border Security and Management for Senior Leadership Course on 19 November 2021.

Discussions on a victim-centred approach and multi-agency co-operation in combating trafficking in human beings were held during an OSCE-organized online seminar on 22 and 23 November 2021.

The OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe organized a three-day online workshop for officers of Tajikistan’s Drugs Control Agency (DCA) on countering trafficking in illicit drugs via the internet and specifics of initial investigations. The event took place in Dushanbe from 15 to 17 November. Fifteen officers from operational and investigation departments of DCA attended the workshop. Participants improved their knowledge on the basics and initial actions in the fight against drug trafficking on the internet.

Identifying best practices in providing support to the victims of hate crimes in South-East Europe was at the centre of a regional conference held on 23 November, organized by the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). This event was dedicated to developing tangible domestic initiatives, and

A four-week training course on sustained field operation capacity for border officers of Tajikistan’s Border Troops was completed on 18 November 2021 in Dushanbe. The OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe in co-operation with Tajikistan’s Border Troops organized the course, which was funded by the European Union.

VIENNA, 23 November 2021 – Addressing the genuine risk of being targeted with legal procedures and vexatious litigation that journalists and other media workers face, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media (RFoM), Teresa Ribeiro, launched today a special report on legal harassment and abuse of the judicial system against the media.

A two-day workshop on strengthening effective security sector governance through partnerships between security institutions and civil society concluded on 23 November 2021 in Tirana. The workshop was jointly organized by the OSCE Conflict Prevention Centre, the OSCE Presence in Albania and the Austrian Federal Ministry of Defence. It brought together some 28 representatives from Albanian state security institutions, civil society, and the media.

Gender responsible budgeting is not just a matter of social justice, but a necessary precondition for sustainable development and social cohesion. This was one of the conclusions of a workshop on gender responsive budgeting, organized by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro, in co-operation with the Secretariat of the Competitiveness Council and the Ministry of Finance and Social Welfare on 19 November 2021 in Podgorica.

Summary In Donetsk region, between the evenings of 19 to 21 November, the Mission recorded 223 ceasefire violations, including 59 explosions. In the previous reporting period, it recorded 421 ceasefire violations in the region. In Luhansk region, between the evenings of 19 to 21 November, the SMM

The OSCE’s Border Management Staff College (BMSC) held a roundtable discussion on 19 November 2021 to examine the security and humanitarian situation in Afghanistan and the current and potential threats it poses to the Central Asian Region and beyond.

Summary In Donetsk region, the Mission recorded 421 ceasefire violations, including 95 explosions. In the previous reporting period, it recorded 715 ceasefire violations in the region. In Luhansk region, the SMM recorded 121 ceasefire violations, including 51 explosions, 37 of which were assessed

On 19 November at 09:45, at a checkpoint in Staromykhailivka (non-government-controlled, 15km west of Donetsk), two visibly armed members of the armed formations denied the SMM passage into the settlement, referring to a need to obtain approval from their superiors. The patrol’s task was to follow

MOSCOW, 19 November 2021 — The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Sweden’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ann Linde, concluded her second official visit to Moscow today.

On 19 November, the Transnational Threats Department (TNTD) and the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) organized a technical briefing to discuss the impact of a regional project “Strengthening the fight against transnational organized crime in South-Eastern Europe through improved regional co-operation in asset seizure, confiscation, management and re-use”.

Summary In Donetsk region, the Mission recorded 715 ceasefire violations, including 98 explosions. In the previous reporting period, it recorded 408 ceasefire violations in the region. In Luhansk region, the SMM recorded 245 ceasefire violations, including 130 explosions. In the previous reporting

About three quarters of citizens perceive the Police more positively as compared to last year, while 41% of citizens claim that the police have experienced changes for the better in the previous 12 months. These are key findings from a Perception of the Police in Montenegro survey commissioned by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro, conducted by the Consultancy Agency DeFacto.

A five-day OSCE-supported refresher course for 20 border service’s document security instructors concluded in Almaty, Kazakhstan on 12 November 2021.

The OSCE Programme Office in Nur-Sultan, in co-operation with the National Commission for Women, Family and Demographic Policy under the President of Kazakhstan (National Commission) organized a training seminar for regional secretaries of the Commission in Nur-Sultan on 18 and 19 November 2021.

Tajik youth increased their understanding and knowledge about negative impacts of corruption and how they can prevent corruption in Tajikistan at an OSCE-organized workshop on 16 and 17 November 2021 in Dushanbe.