In response to the invitation issued on 3 March 2014 on behalf of the Government
of Ukraine to the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR)
and the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) concerning a Human Rights Assessment Mission (HRAM) to Ukraine, the HRAM has concluded its work with the Report on the Human Rights and Minority Rights Situation in Ukraine and publicly released it on 12 May, 2014.

The Report has assessed the human rights and minority rights situation in Ukraine against the backdrop of the developments at the time. The HRAM conducted by ODIHR established that a number of serious human rights violations occurred during the reporting period. As a rule, these violations did not precede but rather accompanied and followed the emergence of various armed groups, first and foremost in Crimea and eastern and southern Ukraine. The targets were primarily pro-Maidan activists and journalists. The HCNM HRAM found that the situation concerning minority rights has not changed significantly in recent months, although underlying shortcomings regarding both the legal framework for rights of persons belonging to national minorities and implementation of its provisions remain. These long-standing issues have gained greater urgency, as immediate concerns of security, stability and predictability have emerged. The most dramatic changes in the situation of minorities and their enjoyment of human, including minority, rights have occurred in Crimea, particularly affecting ethnic Ukrainians and Crimean Tatars, who find themselves in a very precarious situation.