OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Lajčák closes Bratislava Ministerial Council with plea for more political will, dialogue and diplomacy

BRATISLAVA, 6 December 2019 – The OSCE’s participating States need to show more political will and commitment to real dialogue and diplomacy to effectively address the multitude of, and increasingly transnational, security challenges facing the region, said OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Slovak Foreign and European Affairs Minister, Miroslav Lajčák as he closed the 26th OSCE Ministerial Council today in Bratislava. “There is a compelling case for co-operative security,” he said.

He said he was heartened to see that the majority of the 57 participating States had supported his ‘Bratislava Appeal’, which shows that there is wide recognition that the OSCE’s toolbox provides “everything we need” in order to address the security threats of today and tomorrow.

“What we know about the threats on the horizon is that none of us will be able to tackle them alone: Joint solutions will become more crucial than ever,” he said.

Congratulating Sweden and Poland on their confirmations as OSCE Chairs for 2021 and 2022 respectively, he said these decisions provide “certainty and continuity in the leadership” of the OSCE.

The future in respect of Ukraine also “looks brighter now than it did last year”, said the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office.

“Hopefully we will see strong political commitment at next week’s Normandy Summit. I am glad we can conclude this Ministerial Council knowing that the OSCE’s political representation on the ground is secure. Here, I want to again congratulate Ambassador Heidi Grau on her appointment as the OSCE Chairperson’s new Special Representative in Ukraine and in the Trilateral Contact Group and to thank Ambassador Martin Sajdik for his dedication these past years.”

“We are starting 2020 on the right note,” he added. “We have a lot to work with: our principles and commitments, our evolving toolbox and some positive developments. But to take advantage of them, we need political will, and we need a commitment to real dialogue and diplomacy.”

He said the Slovak Chair is committed to supporting Albania, as the incoming Chair for 2020, “in any way we can”.

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said: “I believe we have crafted a realistic and balanced programme, informed by extensive consultation with capitals and in Vienna. Throughout next year, Albania will be an open and inclusive chair. I guarantee you that the voices of each participating State will be heard and that decisions will be taken in a transparent manner. A chair cannot successfully steer the OSCE if there is no political will to compromise.”

OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger also assured Prime Minister Rama that Albania can expect the full support of the OSCE Secretariat during its Chairmanship.

“2020 is a year of many important anniversaries – 30 years since the signing of the Charter of Paris, for example,” he said. This could be a timely moment to start work on developing a vision for 2025 – the 50th anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act – and work towards this collectively and strategically.”