Minister Martin welcomes OSCE Summit Declaration

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Micheál Martin, T.D., has welcomed the statement agreed by Heads of State and Government at the Summit meeting of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), held in Astana, Kazakhstan on 1-2 December.     Ireland is to chair the OSCE in 2012.

 The leaders recommitted the 56 participating States to the vision of a free, democratic, common and indivisible Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian security community, stretching from Vancouver to Vladivostok and encompassing over 1 billion people. They also called on the countries which will chair the OSCE over the coming period (Lithuania, Ireland and Ukraine) to develop a concrete action plan to take this work forward, in co-operation with the other participating States.

Minister Martin said: 

“I warmly welcome the outcome of the OSCE Summit, which provides the organisation with clear guidance for its crucial work in promoting peace, stability and prosperity across the OSCE region. When Ireland assumes the chairmanship in 2012, we will draw on our experience of the Northern Ireland peace process in leading OSCE efforts to help resolve particular conflict situations within the OSCE region. We look forward to working closely with the incoming chair, Lithuania, in preparing for our year as Chairman in Office of the OSCE in 2012”.

Minister Martin also emphasised Ireland’s strong commitment to implementation of the Human Dimension work of the OSCE (human rights and fundamental freedoms), which can be expected to be a priority for the Irish Chairmanship in 2012. 

Note for Editors 

The OSCE, which was formally established in 1994, emerged out of post-Cold War changes in Europe to become the primary instrument for early warning, conflict prevention, crisis management and post-conflict rehabilitation in Europe, Central Asia and North America.  The OSCE was built on the foundation of the Conference for Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE).  This Conference was established by the Helsinki Final Act in 1975. 

Comprising fifty-six participating States (including all the members of the EU, the US, Canada and Russia) and twelve partner countries, the OSCE’s approach to security is comprehensive and co-operative.  It deals with a wide range of security issues, including arms control, preventive diplomacy, confidence and security building measures, human rights, election monitoring and economic and environmental security.

It was agreed at the OSCE Ministerial in Athens in December 2009 that Ireland will chair the OSCE in 2012.  The Chair is held by a member state for one calendar year on the basis of consensus. Ireland has never taken the Chair before in the history of the Organisation. The present Chair is Kazakhstan and Lithuania will have the Chair in 2011.

The full text of the declaration can be found here: http://www.osce.org/documents/mcs/2010/12/48067_en.pdf

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3 December 2010