Latest from OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine based on information received as of 19:30 (Kyiv time), 29 July 2015
This report is for the media and the general public. The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the implementation of the Minsk agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by the parties and security considerations*. The SMM noted an increase in ceasefire violations at and around the Donetsk airport. The situation at and...
57th meeting of Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism takes place in Ergneti
On 30th July 2015, the 57th meeting under the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) took place in Ergneti, co-facilitated by Kęstutis Jankauskas, the Head of the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM), and Ambassador Angelo Gnaedinger, the Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus. The...
Russia Blocks MH17 Tribunal, Activists Call for Turkmenistani Journalist’s Release
Plus, an official in Russia’s North Caucasus faces murder charges and a jailed Azerbaijani reporter gets a prestigious prize in Washington. …read more Source: Transitions Online...
Putinology
Two schools have vied at center stage in recent years seeking to explain the foreign policy behavior of Putin’s Russia. One essentially places the blame almost entirely at the West’s door: The annexation of Crimea and the war on Ukraine were responses to the West’s insufficient sensitivity to Russian “national interests.”...
OSCE supports dialogue efforts to enhance peaceful development of western Donbas, Ukraine
KRASNOARMIYSK, eastern Ukraine, 30 July 2015 – Over 170 representatives of central and local authorities, members of parliament, civic activists and experts gathered today in Krasnoarmiysk, eastern Ukraine, to discuss most burning issues of development for the western part of Donbas region, affected by recent hostilities. The discussions were...
OSCE helps Ukraine to clear Donetsk and Luhansk regions of unexploded ordnance
KYIV, 30 July 2015 – An OSCE-supported project aimed at strengthening the State Emergency Service of Ukraine’s (SESU) capacity to clear explosive munitions in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions has launched today in Kyiv. The high priority project provides training, equipment and assistance to SESU staff, who are facing a major clean-up...
Ukraine’s Avenging Angels
One group has been the main engine behind the country’s anti-corruption efforts. …read more Source: Transitions Online...
Kazakhstan’s Next Parliamentary Election May Lay Foundation for Eventual Presidential Succession
In early July, Kazakh media reported on a new political initiative announced by a group of young activists headed by Olesya Khalabuzar (Informburo.kz, July 8). The group proposed the creation of a political party under the name “Spravedlivost” (“Justice”). This “new left” project seeks to build a multi-ethnic organization that would advocate...
Georgia Establishes New State Security Service
In early July, the parliament of Georgia passed a law on establishing the State Security Service (Civil Georgia, July 4). The new body will decouple the intelligence and security agencies from Georgia’s Ministry of Interior. Among its roles, it is tasked with investigating anti-Georgian espionage and sabotage activities. Prior to 2004, the...
North Caucasians Have Reportedly Been Called Back From Eastern Ukraine Battlefield
New reports are surfacing about another influx of North Caucasian fighters arriving in eastern Ukraine, which began in 2014. In particular, Chechens fighting on the side of the pro-Russia separatists have received substantial media attention. In 2015, however, the Moscow-backed separatist leadership in eastern Ukraine said that all North...
