News and press releases

KYIV, 23 April 2020 – In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has brought about a dramatically changed situation for all of us, the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine continues to focus on the implementation of the Mandate while also ensuring the reduction of risks for the local population and the protection of Mission members, the Chief Monitor of the OSCE SMM, Yaşar Halit Çevik, said today in his video address from Kyiv to the OSCE Permanent Council...

TIRANA/COPENHAGEN/VIENNA/WARSAW/THE HAGUE, 23 April 2020 – The International Day of Multilateralism and Diplomacy for Peace tomorrow will be marked with a heightened appreciation for the importance of comprehensive security and greater sense of urgency for the need to strengthen international co-operation, said the Chair of the OSCE Permanent Council and heads of OSCE institutions in a statement today...

COPENHAGEN, 23 April 2020 – Some 85 participants joined the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s first webinar on the COVID 19 crisis on Wednesday, focused on the economic security fallout of the pandemic. Experts and parliamentarians shared views and lessons learned throughout the OSCE region and discussed the way forward for economic recovery...

KYIV, 23 April 2020 – Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine Yaşar Halit Çevik today paid tribute to SMM medic Joseph Stone, who, while on patrol, tragically lost his life three years ago when an SMM armoured vehicle was struck by an explosion, most likely caused by an anti-tank mine in a non-government controlled area near Pryshyb in Luhansk region.

COPENHAGEN, 23 April 2020 – On the somber occasion of the third anniversary of the death of a member of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, senior OSCE Parliamentary Assembly officials called for an end to harassment and restrictions placed on international monitors in Ukraine, respect for principles of the Helsinki Final Act, and the restoration of Ukrainian territorial integrity...

KYIV, 22 April 2020 – The Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in Ukraine and in the Trilateral Contact Group, Ambassador Heidi Grau, made the following statement to the press after the meeting of the TCG and its working groups...

Summary Compared with the previous reporting period, the Mission recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and significantly more in Luhansk region. The Mission’s passage continued to be denied at checkpoints of the armed formations near Olenivka, Donetsk region and south of the

Article published at openDemocracy by Doris Barnett (MP, Germany)

On 21 and 22 April, members of the armed formations again denied SMM attempts to cross into non-government-controlled areas along official crossing routes: twice in Donetsk region and once in Luhansk region, while further attempts to cross into government-controlled areas were also denied, once in

VIENNA, 21 April 2020 – Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, and the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group (Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, Stéphane Visconti of France, and Andrew Schofer of the United States of America) have held frequent consultations remotely since mid-March, including a joint video conference on 21 April. Andrzej Kasprzyk, the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, also participated in these consultations...

KAMENSK-SHAKHTINSKIY, Russian Federation. The Observer Mission (OM) continues to operate 24/7 at both Border Crossing Points (BCPs). The overall number of border crossings by persons decreased at both BCPs compared to the previous week...

Summary Compared with the previous 24 hours, the Mission recorded more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The Mission’s passage continued to be denied at checkpoints of the armed formations near Horlivka, Donetsk region and south of the Stanytsia Luhanska bridge, Luhansk

Op-ed by Dr. Elona Gjebrea Hoxha (MP, Albania): Only time will tell what the greatest impact of the COVID-19 pandemic will be, whether its effects on public health or on the economy are the most significant in the long run, but with unemployment rates soaring and many businesses closing, it is clear that the economic impacts will be profound to say the least...

How to handle electronic evidence, and in particular, request electronic evidence across borders, to support counter-terrorism efforts was the focus of an online workshop held on 21 April 2020 that brought together national experts from 13 countries and several international organizations...

Warsaw/Copenhagen, 21 April 2020 – A strong role for parliaments is crucial to the transparency and accountability of government measures as the COVID-19 pandemic puts our democracies to the test, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) and the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA) said in a statement today...

On 18, 19, and 20 April, members of the armed formations again denied SMM attempts to cross into non-government-controlled areas along official crossing routes: four times in Donetsk region and once in Luhansk region, while further attempts to cross into government-controlled areas were also denied, twice in Luhansk region and twice in Donetsk region...

Summary Compared with the previous reporting period, between the evenings of 17 and 18 April, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Between the evenings of 18 and 19 April, the Mission recorded more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions,

The OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek provided personal protective equipment (PPE) to its state partners to contribute to Kyrgyzstan’s response to the outbreak of COVID-19. The handover of the PPE took place on 18 April 2020 in Bishkek.

COPENHAGEN, 20 April 2020 – The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly published today a new web page covering the Assembly’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic...

Summary Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Members of the armed formations continued to deny the SMM passage towards government-controlled areas at a checkpoint south of Stanytsia Luhanska bridge, Luhansk

Brussels/Geneva/Tirana, 18 April 2020- We, the Co-Chairs of the Geneva International Discussions (GID), recalling our statement from 31 March, and in the spirit of the call of UN Secretary General Guterres, strongly urge all the GID participants to set aside differences and to refrain from actions that could lead to increased tension...

On 16 and 17 April, members of the armed formations again denied SMM attempts to cross into non-government-controlled areas along official crossing routes: twice in Donetsk region and once in Luhansk region, while a further attempt to cross into government-controlled areas in Luhansk region was

Summary Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region. Members of the armed formations continued to deny the SMM passage towards non-government-controlled areas at a checkpoint near Oleksandrivka, Donetsk region

On 17 April 2020, the Foreign Ministry of Turkmenistan organized an international media forum dedicated to the 25th anniversary of Turkmenistan’s permanent neutrality.

The OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan delivered personal protective equipment (PPE) to the Main Directorate for Execution of Sentence of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on 10 April 2020 in Tashkent.

VIENNA, 17 April 2020 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, expressed his concerns today about the fact that journalists in Turkey will in effect not benefit from a new law releasing inmates from prison, amid public health concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

WARSAW, 17 April 2020 – It is only through the strength of our diversity that we will overcome the health crisis we are facing as well as the economic and social challenges likely to follow, the Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) said today in response to the spate of racist slogans and attacks that have followed the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic...

The OSCE Mission to Montenegro procured and handed over food and hygiene items for babies to the Red Cross of Montenegro to be distributed to families in need...

Summary Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region. Members of the armed formations continued to deny the SMM passage towards non-government-controlled areas at checkpoints near Verkhnoshyrokivske, Donetsk

KYIV, 16 April 2020 – Тhe Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in Ukraine and in the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), Ambassador Heidi Grau, made today the following statement...

TIRANA / VIENNA, 16 April 2020 – The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Prime Minister and Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs of Albania, Edi Rama, and OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger welcomed today’s mutual release and exchange of detainees in eastern Ukraine...

COPENHAGEN / STRASBOURG / BRUSSELS, 16 April 2020 – The Presidents of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Parliamentary Assembly (NATO PA), and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE PA) issued the following joint statement:

Summary Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The Mission observed damage to a railway station and a residential building in Yasynuvata. Members of the armed formations continued to deny the SMM passage towards

On 14 and 15 April, members of the armed formations again denied SMM attempts to cross along official crossing routes: twice in Luhansk region and once in Donetsk region, while a further attempt to cross into non-government-controlled areas in Donetsk region was unsuccessful due to an obstruction.

VIENNA, 15 April 2020 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, expressed his concerns today about Bulgaria’s draft legislation that would criminalize the spread of "internet misinformation". Punishment includes fines of up to 1,000 euros and even imprisonment of up to three years...

Kamensk-Shakhtinskiy, Russian Federation. The Observer Mission (OM) continues to operate 24/7 at both Border Crossing Points (BCPs). The overall number of border crossings by persons decreased at both BCPs compared to the previous week.

KYIV, 14 April 2020 – The Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in Ukraine and in the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), Ambassador Heidi Grau, made today the following statement to the press.

Summary Compared with the previous 24 hours, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region. The SMM heard impacts close to its position near the Donetsk Filtration Station. Members of the armed formations continued to deny the SMM passage towards

VIENNA / SARAJEVO, 14 April 2020 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, and the Head of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kathleen Kavalec, pointed to the risk of potential violations of fundamental freedoms after the Republika Srpska, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, issued a decree which could restrict the media and journalists from reporting freely on the COVID-19 pandemic.

On 13 April, an SMM patrol comprising four members and two vehicles was positioned outside of the railway station in Yasynuvata (non-government-controlled, 16km north-east of Donetsk) to monitor adherence to a localized ceasefire to facilitate the operation of the Donetsk Filtration Station (15km north of Donetsk)...

Summary Compared with the previous reporting period, between the evenings of 10 and 11 April, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Between the evenings of 11 and 12 April, the Mission recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region, compared with the

On 11, 12, and 13 April, members of the armed formations again denied SMM attempts to cross into non-government-controlled areas along official crossing routes: four times in Donetsk region and twice in Luhansk region, while a further attempt to cross into government-controlled areas in Luhansk region was also denied...

VIENNA, 12 April 2020 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, expressed his concern today regarding two recent incidents against the KoSSev online portal...

Summary Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region. Members of the armed formations continued to deny the SMM passage towards non-government-controlled areas at a checkpoint near Horlivka, Donetsk region and

On 9 and 10 April, members of the armed formations again denied SMM attempts to cross into non-government-controlled areas on official crossing routes: three times in Donetsk region and once in Luhansk region, while a further attempt to cross into government-controlled areas in Luhansk region was

Summary Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region. In Donetsk region, small-arms fire was assessed as directed at SMM mini-unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) flying over areas near Petrivske and Hranitne, one of

Summary Compared with the previous reporting period, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region. Members of the armed formations continued to deny the SMM passage towards non-government-controlled areas at checkpoints in Donetsk region and towards

The OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe organized a three-day training seminar for officers of the Drugs Control Agency of Tajikistan (DCA) from 7 to 9 April 2020 in Dushanbe. The course trained participants on how to protect human rights and promote gender aspects in the daily work of law enforcement agencies. Some 25 young officers from DCA participated. This initiative was part of a 15-day special training for young employees of the DCA, who recently started their career in the law enforcement sector.

COPENHAGEN, 9 April 2020 – The leadership of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly on Wednesday agreed to endorse a call by United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres for a worldwide ceasefire, emphasizing that a number of conflicts continue to rage in the OSCE area even as countries struggle to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

KYIV, 9 April 2020 – The Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in Ukraine and in the Trilateral Contact Group, Ambassador Heidi Grau, made the following statement to the press after the meeting of the TCG and its working groups:..