UPDATE - OSCE chairman-in-office arrives in Ukraine’s capital on official visit

ADDS STATEMENTS ON MEETING BETWEEN OSCE CHAIRMAN-IN-OFFICE & UKRAINIAN FOREIGN MINISTER

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Bujar Osmani, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s (OSCE) chairman-in-office, on Monday arrived in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv on an official visit.

“Witnessing the impact on children's & education in a school in #Kyiv targeted by RF (Russian Federation) attacks,” Osmani, who is also North Macedonia’s foreign minister, said in a statement on X.

Osmani said that his observations are a reminder of the “urgent need for peace,” and that the OSCE’s Extra-budgetary Support Program for Ukraine provides psychosocial help to children affected by the conflict.

“Every child deserves safety, education & bright future,” he added.

Osmani later held talks with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, after which he expressed the OSCE's continued support for "a just peace for Ukraine while upholding its sovereignty and territorial integrity" in a statement on X.

For his part, Kuleba said Kyiv appreciated the North Macedonian chairmanship's "robust stance in defense of OSCE principles and in opposition to Russia’s attacks on Ukraine."

"I also urged for additional international mechanisms to secure the safe return of Ukrainian civilian detainees," Kuleba added.

Earlier in the day, a statement by the OSCE said that Osmani, during his visit, will conduct meetings with “high-level government officials, parliamentarians, civil society and staff of the OSCE Extra-budgetary Support Programme for Ukraine.”

“The discussions will focus on the most pressing challenges faced by civilians due to Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine, and the OSCE’s continued role in supporting Ukraine’s people, institutions and civil society,” it further said.