Iryna Sabashuk and Tina Schoen leave the CEC in Yerevan following a meeting with the Head of the External Relations Department. YEREVAN, 31 January 2013 – OSCE PA Deputy Secretary General Tina Schoen and Operations Officer Iryna Sabashuk visited Yerevan on 29-30 January, in preparation for the upcoming OSCE PA election observation mission to the 18 February presidential election in Armenia. Schoen and Sabashuk met with the Secretary General and

President Riccardo and Head of Turkey’s OSCE PA Delegation Emin Onen on the Turkish-Syrian border in November. COPENHAGEN, 31 January 2013 – The theme of the OSCE PA Winter Meeting’s Special Debate, to be held on the afternoon of 22 February, is "How OSCE countries should respond to crises in Syria, the Sahel and North Africa." The theme takes into account strong parliamentary interest in the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Syria, as well as

A1plus.am 30 January 2013 Deputy Secretary General of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, Tina Schoen, arrived in Armenia on January 29 for a pre-election visit ahead of February's presidential election. Schoen and Operations Officer Iryna Sabashuk are holding meetings in Yerevan to gather information about the pre-election situation in the country and prepare logistical elements for the mission. "We will come back before the elections when we

COPENHAGHEN, 24 January 2013 – OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Deputy Secretary General Tina Schoen will travel to Armenia 29-30 January for a pre-election visit ahead of February’s presidential election. Schoen and Operations Officer Iryna Sabashuk will hold meetings in Yerevan to gather information about the pre-election situation in the country and prepare logistical elements for the mission.

OSCE Chairman-in-Office Leonid Kozhara speaks with OSCE PA Secretary General Spencer Oliver, 17 January 2013. VIENNA, 17 January 2013 -- Representatives of the PA are participating this week in the opening of the Ukrainian Chairmanship in Vienna, including the opening address by the new Chairman-in-Office, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Leonid Kozhara. The PA will also take part in the Annual Meeting of the Chairmanship and the

ROME, 11 January 2013 – OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Riccardo Migliori met Wednesday with Pope Benedict XVI at the Holy See. “Thanks to its tireless efforts the Holy See plays a major role within the OSCE,” Migliori said following the visit. “In particular, religious freedom is a litmus test to gauge respect of human rights by a given people, culture or nation. “Against this backdrop we set ourselves the goal of adopting all possible