Isabel Santos (MP, Portugal) COPENHAGEN, 24 March 2015 – The Chair of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly's Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions, Isabel Santos (MP, Portugal), today criticized the continued official targeting of civil society organizations in Russia, exemplified by the fine levied against the Sakharov Center this week. "The Sakharov Center plays a crucial role in commemorating and educating about

OSCE PA President Ilkka Kanerva at the Assembly's Winter Meeting, 19 February 2015 COPENHAGEN, 18 March 2015 – OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Ilkka Kanerva (MP, Finland) today issued the following statement on the one-year anniversary of the illegal annexation of Crimea, Ukraine by the Russian Federation: "Last March, Russia attempted to legitimize its occupation of Crimea and the fabricated 'referendum' that followed by supposedly

COPENHAGEN, 13 March 2015 – The Chair of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly's Committee on Political Affairs and Security, U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, today expressed concern regarding the Russian Federation's complete suspension of work under the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE). "I am deeply disappointed in Russia's decision to turn its back on its international obligations under the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in

COPENHAGEN, 13 March 2015 – The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly's Special Representative on South East Europe, Roberto Battelli (MP, Slovenia), today expressed concern about increasingly turbulent political developments in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. He noted that the ongoing developments in Skopje are, above all, the latest manifestation of a protracted absence of constructive dialogue across the political spectrum. The Special

Participants gathered at the Swedish Parliament for the OSCE PA's third Helsinki +40 seminar on 11 March. (photo courtesy of Melker Dahlstrand/The Riksdag Administration) The third event in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly's Helsinki +40 seminar series took place on 11 March in Stockholm, with experts, policy-makers, ambassadors and OSCE parliamentarians considering how the European security architecture, and the OSCE's inclusive security

Benjamin Cardin COPENHAGEN, 9 March 2015 – OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Ilkka Kanerva (MP, Finland) has appointed U.S. Senator Benjamin Cardin to serve as the PA's first Special Representative on Anti-Semitism, Racism and Intolerance. The newly established position will help focus and strengthen the Assembly's work on countering these challenges across the OSCE area. "Senator Cardin has long been one of the leading voices in both the