Latest from OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), based on information received as of 19:30 (Kyiv time), 23 April 2015
The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the Implementation of the Minsk agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by third parties and security considerations*. The SMM were prevented from accessing part of Shyrokyne (20km east of Mariupol) by “Donetsk People’s Republic” members. The SMM revisited heavy weapons...
Balkan Gas Corridor Unveiled, Chechen Leader Threatens Russian Police
Plus, the Macedonia tapes scandal reveals a twisted media scene, and Poland accelerates its military buildup. …read more Source: Transitions Online...
Who is Trying to Turn Kyiv into Donetsk?
Whatever the truth about the recent deaths of politicians and journalists in Ukraine, they can only harm the country. From Chetverta Vlada. …read more Source: Transitions Online...
Sanctions and Russia: lessons from the Cold War
The public debate around the effectiveness of sanctions is divided between those who believe that sanctions do not work; a more diffuse camp of lukewarm supporters arguing that sanctions are either a necessary evil or a way to preserve the credibility of the EU and US; and a smaller group of true believers who are convinced of their political and...
Need for women to be included in conflict prevention and resolution processes stressed at OSCE-supported workshop in Ukraine
KYIV, 24 April 2015 –The need for women, as active stakeholders in conflict, to be included in prevention and resolution processes was stressed during a workshop supported by the OSCE Project Co-ordination in Ukraine, OSCE Gender Section and UN Women on 23 and 24 April in Kyiv. UNSC resolution 1325 recognizes the different effects of crisis and...
OSCE Deputy Chief Monitor in Ukraine to hold press conference in Mariupol
KYIV, 24 April 2015 – Deputy Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) Alexander Hug will hold press conference in Mariupol today. Hug will talk about the Mission’s recent activities, security and the humanitarian situation in and around Shyrokyne. Journalists are invited to attend the press conference today,...
The EU and the NPT: drawing lines
On 27 April, some 150 states and 100 non-governmental organisations will convene at the Review Conference (RevCon) of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in New York for four weeks. At the five-yearly meeting, state parties negotiate assess members’ performance in implementing the treaty and outline further steps to be taken. While...
Red Legacy
Almost five years after toxic sludge flooded Devecser, the town is thriving – but worries remain about similar industrial waste sites around Hungary. …read more Source: Transitions Online...
Journalists unions from Russia and Ukraine meet to discuss journalists’ safety, jointly condemn attacks on journalists
VIENNA, 23 April 2015 – Senior representatives from the Independent Media Trade Union of Ukraine, National Union of the Journalists of Ukraine, and the Russian Union of Journalists met in Vienna today to discuss ways to improve professional standards and safety of journalists in Ukraine. The unions met under the auspices of the OSCE...
Latest from OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), based on information received as of 19:30 (Kyiv time), 22 April 2015
This report is for the media and general public. The SMM monitored the implementation of the “Package of measures for the Implementation of the Minsk agreements”. Its monitoring was restricted by third parties and security considerations*. Fighting continued around Donetsk airport and Shyrokyne. The SMM observed military movement on both sides of...
