COPENHAGEN, 28 November 2024 – With the Russian Federation’s full-scale military invasion continuing to devastate Ukraine, OSCE PA President Pia Kauma (Finland) has appointed three Special Rapporteurs to the Parliamentary Support Team for Ukraine (PSTU), tasked with promoting the nation’s resilience across the OSCE’s comprehensive security framework.
OSCE PA Third Committee Chair Lucie Potůčková (Czechia) was appointed to assist in the promotion of democratic institutions, governance and the rule of law in Ukraine. Mati Raidma, Head of the Estonian Delegation to the OSCE PA, was appointed PSTU Special Rapporteur with particular emphasis on societal aspects of resilience including grassroot and community support, reintegration of war veterans, empowering a new generation of resilience builders, and bolstering vital services including critical infrastructure.
Carina Ödebrink (Sweden), who serves as Third Committee Rapporteur, was appointed PSTU Special Rapporteur to focus on promoting accountability for violations of OSCE commitments, abuses of human rights, breeches of international humanitarian and human rights law, as well as possible war crimes including with respect to the forced relocation of Ukrainian children, detained civilians and wartime sexual violence.
“With the winter period approaching and the increasingly negative implications of Russia’s war against Ukraine, it is important that the Parliamentary Support Team for Ukraine maximizes its assistance to Ukraine, particularly with the aim of strengthening its resilience throughout all phases of the conflict cycle,” President Kauma noted in her appointment letters. “Promoting greater resilience will help Ukraine better withstand the hardship deriving from the ongoing conflict as well as effectively prepare for the next phase of the conflict cycle, the much-needed post conflict rehabilitation phase.”
The PSTU Special Rapporteurs will report at the meetings of the PSTU to inform members of recent developments, activities as well as achievements and challenges, as well as advise on effective strategies to counter and address the numerous challenges ultimately crippling fragile and war-affected communities.
For more information on the Parliamentary Support Team for Ukraine, please click here.
