20/02/2006 (Agence Europe) - In a press release published on 17 February, the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Belgian foreign minister Karel De Gucht, expressed 'his consternation at the decision taken by the Ukrainian authorities to extradite 11 Uzbek asylum seekers back to Uzbekistan: 'This forcible repatriation of asylum seekers constitutes a serious violation of the principle of non-refoulement and of international commitments undertaken by Ukraine, namely the 1951 UN Refugee Convention and the 1984 Convention against Torture, to both of which Ukraine is signatory.' Karel De Gucht 'expressed regret that the Ukrainian authorities have not honoured their word given to the United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees (UNHCR), not to deport current asylum seekers,' and is seeking urgent clarification from the Ukrainian authorities and information on the fate of the 11 Uzbek asylum seekers.