Tonino Picula at the post-election press conference in Moscow, 5 March 2012. MOSCOW, 5 March 2012 – Although candidates in yesterday's presidential election in the Russian Federation were able to campaign unhindered, conditions were clearly skewed in favour of one of the contestants, current Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, the international observers concluded in a statement issued today. "There were serious problems from the very start of this

CBS News 4 March 2012 (CBS/AP) MOSCOW - Vladimir Putin scored a decisive victory in Russia's presidential election Sunday to return to the Kremlin and extend his hold on power for six more years. His eyes brimming with tears, he defiantly proclaimed to a sea of supporters that they had triumphed over opponents intent on "destroying Russia's statehood and usurping power." Putin's win was never in doubt as many across the vast country still see

COPENHAGEN, 28 February 2012 – President Petros Efthymiou has announced that the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Parliamentary Assembly will observe the Russian presidential election on 4 March. Efthymiou, who led the observation mission to Russian Duma elections in December, made the decision after a discussion with heads of national delegations at the Assembly's Winter Meeting. He nominated Vice-President Tonino Picula

COPENHAGEN, 24 Febuary 2012 – President Petros Efthymiou today issued the following statement on Syria with consent of the Joint Session of the Assembly's three General Committees: "As President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, I deeply regret the violence and loss of life in Syria. As OSCE participating States and partners for co-operation have expressed their concern about the current situation, I call for a full respect of human rights

Rapporteur Vilija Aleknaite-Abramikiene presents her plans for the 2012 Annual Session in Monaco, 23 Feb 2012. VIENNA, 24 February 2012 – The meeting of the OSCE PA's General Committee on Political Affairs and Security on Thursday, chaired by German parliamentarian Karl-Georg Wellmann, included a report from the committee rapporteur on her plans for the upcoming Annual Session in Monaco, and a follow-up report from the vice-chair regarding

OSCE PA Senior Counsellor Semyon Dzakhaev speaks with Committee Chair Serhiy Shevchuk before the meeting, 23 Feb 2012. VIENNA, 24 February 2012 – OSCE parliamentarians debated the economic and financial crisis in Europe in the Parliamentary Assembly's General Committee on Economic Affairs, Science, Technology and the Environment yesterday. Chaired by Ukrainian parliamentarian Serhiy Shevchuck, the committee pointed out that austerity and