A confidential internal investigation has revealed severe operational failures within the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) during its emergency evacuation from Ukraine following Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. The leaked document, obtained by AFP, details how the organization’s “insufficient preparedness” and lack of contingency planning placed personnel at “serious security risk.
The report highlights that approximately one month prior to the invasion, an explicit directive was issued to dismantle existing evacuation preparations and halt further planning to avoid creating panic within host nation Ukraine. This decision contributed to what the internal review characterizes as “chaotic movements of people and assets” during the actual evacuation, compounded by unclear roles, responsibilities, and decision-making authority among stakeholders.
Tragically, the consequences of these failures were human. Ukrainian staff member Maryna Fenina lost her life during Russian bombardment of Kharkiv on March 1, 2022. Three other Ukrainian nationals who remained in eastern territories under rebel control—Dmytro Shabanov, Maxim Petrov, and Vadym Golda—were subsequently arrested on espionage charges disputed by the OSCE and remain detained in Russian prisons.
The review further notes that sensitive records were left behind during the emergency withdrawal, creating ongoing concerns about potential persecution of locally hired national mission members. The evacuation complications were exacerbated when several member nations, including the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Denmark, independently decided to withdraw their contingents in mid-February 2022 without prior coordination with mission leadership.
Despite these documented failures, the OSCE asserts it has implemented significant reforms in response to the lessons learned. The organization has strengthened its crisis response framework, introduced regular simulation exercises, and improved coordination between field operations and secretariat structures. These enhancements come as the OSCE positions itself to potentially deploy a new monitoring mission to Ukraine should ceasefire negotiations materialize.