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New Delhi: In a statement issued here on November 23, the Foreign Ministers of former Soviet Central Asian Republics of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz, Tajikistan and the Russian Federation have come out in support of the latter after Chairmanship-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) making it impossible for the delegation of the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs to take part in the 29th OSCE Ministerial Council meeting.
A joint statement was issued on November 23 by the Foreign Ministers of the Republic of Armenia, the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Russian Federation, and the Republic of Tajikistan.
The Foreign Ministers of the former Soviet Central Asian Republics in their statement stated, “We, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Russian Federation, and the Republic of Tajikistan, reaffirming our vision of the OSCE as a regional pan-European forum that operates on the basis of the rule of consensus and the principle of sovereign equality of states.
The further stated, “Noting that in a crisis situation the OSCE should secure strict observance of the fundamental principles of the 1975 Helsinki Final Act and the subsequent commitments and decisions of the OSCE decision-making authorities,
recalling the goal of the OSCE member states, envisaged in the Helsinki Final Act, to facilitate improvement of their relations with one another, develop their cooperation as equals, and promote mutual understanding and trust, showing solidarity”.
The Foreign Ministers from the Central Asian Republics further added, “We express our disagreement with the unprecedented decision of the OSCE Chairmanship-in-Office, which has made it impossible for the delegation of the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs to take part in the 29th OSCE Ministerial Council meeting. We note that such actions violate the norms of the OSCE, the Rules of Procedure and decisions of its decision-making authorities, in particular, the decision of the 2002 OSCE Ministerial Council in Porto on the role of the Chairmanship-in-Office, which states that it must keep its actions consistent with stances agreed upon by all member states and take into account the full scope of member states’ opinions.”
“We state that in infringing on the rights of the Russian delegation, the Polish Chairmanship-in-Office has failed to fulfil its obligations to the OSCE, currently the most representative pan-European organisation for security and cooperation.
We deem it as non-compliant with the spirit of the Organisation to put the provisions of the host country’s national legislation and regulations of various integration associations above commitments within the OSCE. We note that such steps by the Chairmanship-in-Office are detrimental to the activities of the OSCE”, the statement adds further.
The Foreign Ministers from the Central Asian Republics further stated, “We express our disagreement with the decision by the OSCE Chairmanship-in-Office not to send an invitation to the Collective Security Treaty Organisation to participate in the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting, in violation of the long-standing practice”.
“We urge the OSCE Chairmanship-in-Office to ensure equal and inclusive representation of all OSCE member states without exception, and call on future chairmanships in OSCE institutions and structures to take a constructive approach to their function and ensure that all member states of the organisation observe their mandates and the practice of achieving the goals of dialogue and cooperation for the benefit of all OSCE member states”, adds the statement.
