News and press releases

YEREVAN, 13 September 2018 – Concluding a two-day visit to Armenia, OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President George Tsereteli (MP, Georgia) welcomed the ongoing efforts to implement electoral reforms in the country, urging broad political consensus for any changes to the electoral system. He reiterated the OSCE and the Parliamentary Assembly’s commitment to supporting Armenia’s continued democratic development...

The 10th annual OSCE regional workshop on explosive hazards reduction and response in Central Asia concluded in Astana on 13 September 2018. This year, the event focused on the emerging threat posed by Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and best practices in countering them...

Human rights-compliant approaches to addressing threats and challenges posed by “foreign terrorist fighters” are the focus of a new publication presented by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) at an event on 12 September 2018, during the annual Human Dimension

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region, compared with the previous reporting period. The Mission recorded ceasefire violations near the Zolote disengagement area. In the Petrivske disengagement area, the SMM spotted two soldiers and an infantry fighting vehicle of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Its access remained restricted in the disengagement areas, near Leonove near the border with the Russian Federation, in an area of Luhansk region beyond government control, as well as, again, near Verkhnoshyrokivske and Zaichenko.* The Mission monitored electrical repairs near the Donetsk Filtration Station and continued to monitor repairs to water infrastructure in Stanytsia Luhanska. The SMM continued to monitor the situation south-east of Kherson following reports of hazardous air pollution.

The final report on Slovenia’s 3 June 2018 parliamentary elections issued by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on 12 September 2018 concludes that the elections were administered in a professional and efficient manner, with a high level of confidence among

WARSAW, 12 September 2018 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, said that today’s decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation to uphold the sentencing of Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko is deeply disappointing...

WARSAW, 12 September 2018- The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, today strongly condemned the arrest of Austrian journalist Max Zirngast and the continued prosecution of journalists in Turkey.