The ten-year anniversary of the collapse of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), an original signatory to the 1975 Helsinki Final Act, fell in 2001. The following year marked another milestone, perhaps less widely noted: the passage of a decade since the entry of the Eurasian and East European States into the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which embraces all of Europe, the former Soviet Union, the United States and Canada. Membership in the organization is predicated on the acceptance of certain bedrock principles of democracy, a wide array of human rights commitments and modern norms of statecraft, including respect for the rule of law and promotion of civil society. This report conducts a review of Eastern European and Eurasian countries’ records on these commitments over the course of the decade following the Soviet Union’s collapse.
Relevant Issues
Relevant Countries
Leadership
Publication category
Chairman Wilson and Ranking Member Cohen Condemn Rus...
Dec 05, 2024WASHINGTON—Today, U.S. Helsinki Commission Chairman Representative Joe Wilson (SC-02) and Ranking Member Representative Steve Cohen (TN-09) issued the following statement condemning Russia’s malign interference in the Romanian presidential election, the second round of which is scheduled […]
Helsinki Commission Ranking Member Cohen Celebrates ...
Aug 01, 2024WASHINGTON—Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9), the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s 56-nation Parliamentary Assembly’s Special Representative on Political Prisoners, today welcomed news that three journalists and Paul Whelan, wrongly […]
Russia’s Persecution of Ukrainian Christians
Jul 24, 2024Independent Ukraine has enjoyed a robust tradition of religious freedom. As such, Ukrainians today represent a variety of faiths, including many Christian denominations. Unfortunately, Russia—which has little tolerance for independent […]
Helsinki Commission House Leadership Marks Fourth An...
Jun 06, 2024WASHINGTON—Today, Chairman Rep. Joe Wilson (SC-02) and Ranking Member Rep. Steve Cohen (TN-09) marked the fourth annual Counter-Kleptocracy Month. The U.S. Helsinki Commission has marked Counter-Kleptocracy month since June 2021 […]
Helsinki Commission Advances Human Rights, Demands f...
Oct 19, 2023By Shannon Simrell, Senior Policy Advisor Between October 2-13, 11 Helsinki Commission staff joined approximately 1,400 representatives of OSCE participating States (pS) and civil society representatives in Warsaw, Poland in […]
Vladimir Kara-Murza: Putin’s Personal Prisoner
Sep 20, 2023Stream here: HEARING: Vladimir Kara-Murza: Putin’s Personal Prisoner – YouTube Vladimir Kara-Murza, a father, husband, and a freedom fighter, has been in detention for over five hundred days and is currently […]
Russia’s Alpine Assets: Money Laundering and S...
Jul 18, 2023Switzerland has for years been a primary destination for Russian money laundering and, since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a weak link in Western sanctions enforcement. This Helsinki Commission hearing […]
Hearing: Supporting a Democratic and Secure Moldova
Jul 06, 2023Wednesday, July 12, 2023 2:00 pm Cannon House Office Building, Room 210 Live stream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jm-R6rfQbCo In recent years, Moldova has enacted numerous reforms under current Moldovan President Maia Sandu to […]
Helsinki Commission Leadership Celebrate Pardon of N...
Jun 23, 2023Washington—Today, the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the U.S. Helsinki Commission, Representative Joe Wilson (SC-02) and Ranking Member Steve […]
Chairman Wilson and RM Cohen Mark Third Annual Count...
Jun 16, 2023WASHINGTON—Today, Helsinki Commission Chairman Joe Wilson and Ranking Member Steve Cohen, Co-Chairmen of the Counter-Kleptocracy Caucus, marked the third annual Counter-Kleptocracy Month. “Foreign corruption and kleptocracy is the main reason […]
HELSINKI COMMISSION SENDS APPEAL TO GEORGIAN PRESIDE...
Apr 28, 2023WASHINGTON— The leadership of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the U.S. Helsinki Commission, Chairman Representative Joe Wilson (SC-02), Co-Chairman Senator Ben Cardin (MD), and […]
CHURCH, STATE, AND RUSSIA’S WAR ON UKRAINE
Apr 27, 2023The Putin regime has long used the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) to consolidate its power at home and abroad. Under the leadership of Patriarch Kirill, the ROC has explicitly endorsed […]