The reports of the Moscow mechanism should be clearer – human rights activists say

The reports of the Moscow Mechanism* and other international missions and organizations on human rights during Russia’s war against Ukraine can and should be improved. This was discussed, in particular, during the OSCE Supplementary Human Dimension Meetings II, which took place in Vienna.

Based on the results of the meeting of human rights defenders from Ukraine and other European countries, recommendations were developed.

They, in particular, say that:

• Human rights activists emphasize the importance of the report of the Moscow Mechanism and other international missions and organizations, which is important for decision-making by various institutions.
• Such reports should be regular.
• Although the Moscow Mechanism does not investigate crimes, future reports should provide clearer conclusions, analyze and describe the relationship between events.

Earlier we reported that during this meeting, the executive director of the Center for Civil Liberties Oleksandra Romantsova stressed that the OSCE needs a new approach to better record Russia’s war crimes in Ukraine.

Full text of recommendations in Ukrainian and English.

* The Moscow Mechanism is an established procedure within the OSCE that allows the deployment of a short-term international mission to establish the facts that address a specific human rights issue within the OSCE region.