The OSCE is closing the office of the project coordinator in Ukraine because of Russia

The OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau, and OSCE Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid stated that the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe is closing the office of the project coordinator in Ukraine.

This is stated in the OSCE statement.

This happened because of Russiaʼs position.

"Regrettably, despite the overwhelming support from participating States for the continuation of the important work that the Project Co-ordinator has carried out for 23 years, no consensus on its mandate extension was reached due to the position of the Russian Federation," Zbigniew Rau said.

He added that the Polish presidency will make every effort to preserve the invaluable experience and knowledge gained by the project coordinator and to ensure that the OSCE remains present and cooperates with Ukraine. He assured that consultations with member states on the future role and presence of the OSCE in Ukraine will continue.

From July 1, all mandatory activities of the OSCE Project Co-ordinatorʼs Office in Ukraine will be suspended.

• At the end of April, the OSCE decided to end the work of the Special Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, as Russia had blocked its extension. And in May, the Security Service of Ukraine thwarted a special FSB operation to discredit the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europeʼs mission.
• The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba called on the OSCE to exclude Russia from the organization. He noted that Russia violates the principles of security in Europe.