SKOPJE, 14 November 2023 – The OSCE expert network, which will serve as a point of consultation and dialogue on the three dimensions of the OSCE, was launched in Skopje by the OSCE 2023 Chairpersonship of North Macedonia and the OSCE Secretariat.

Institutes and think tanks that are part of this expanded network will have opportunities to engage with each other and with OSCE officials and participating States on the full range of security challenges facing the region. Whether considering border security or arms control, organized crime and corruption or security implications of climate change, their independent expert analysis and research on various thematic priorities will help inform policy debates within the OSCE.

“The event is entitled ‘Strategic Foresight in a Changing Environment: Perspectives for Cooperation and Security in Europe – Building the OSCE Expert Network’. It is the official kick-off of our expert network, the network of think-tanks gravitating towards the OSCE and its participating States,” said the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Minister of Foreign Affairs of North Macedonia Bujar Osmani.

“North Macedonia has a unique model of engaging civil society. Our Foreign Ministry promotes and implements an active approach of consultation and co-operation with the think-tank community: a model that represents a formal avenue for consultation and dialogue for policy development, while offering a regular meet-up opportunity between policy-makers and policy researchers. It serves as a platform for the exchange of ideas, data, and analysis and enables a mutual exchange of views and perspectives.”

The two-day inaugural event served as a platform for substantial policy discussion on security-related challenges facing OSCE participating States and on the Organization’s role in European security, as well as on trends and scenarios from across the OSCE region.

“To say that these are challenging times is a profound understatement. But to assume that these challenges have crippled the OSCE, or that they imply our obsolescence, is simply wrong,” noted Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid. “The reality is that the role the OSCE plays is more important than ever. And coming together with external experts to discuss security challenges and the role of the OSCE provides a valuable opportunity to share experience and expertise that can help make our work even more effective.”

Conclusions and recommendations from the event will be provided to OSCE participating States in the run-up to the Ministerial Council meeting taking place in Skopje on 30 November and 1 December.