News

Mr. President, I wish to welcome Minister Dacić to the Council in his capacity as the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office. Forty years ago the Helsinki Final Act spelt out fundamental principles governing relations from Vancuver to Vladivostok: non-use of force, non-infringement upon each other’s sovereignty, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. As we commemorate the 70th anniversary of UN Charter and 40th anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act we have to recommit ourselves to the constitutional foundations of the UN and the OSCE.

The very foundation of this Organization has been seriously damaged as the UN Charter and Helsinki Final Act were violated by Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine and occupation of Crimea.

The ink of Security Council resolution 2202 was still fresh when Russia-backed and commanded militants shelled Debaltsevo, Gorlivka, Pervomaysk. The resolution has obliged all parties, including Russia, to implement their commitments under the Minsk agreements.

The OSCE plays key role. It has the mandate to facilitate the implementation of all Minsk agreements. The challenge is the denial of access. The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission must be allowed to carry out fully it’s monitoring and verification functions. Denial of access by pro-Russian militants is a violation of Resolution 2202. Another crucial step will be for effective monitoring of the Russian-Ukrainian border, so far denied by Russia in order to sustain the war in eastern Ukraine.

Could the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office elaborate of possible UN cooperation with OSCE to ensure full control and monitoring of the Russia-Ukraine border, of which now the OSCE observes only 80 meters ?

Mr. President,

The protracted conflicts in Europe have been simmering for too long. The violent trend in the Nagorno-Karabakh is worrisome. There is clear need for the highest political involvement in order not to let the situation to spiral out of the control.

All means are used by Russia to hinder the Moldovan European integration process. The 5+2 talks have been taken hostage by the separatist region of Transnistria and their political masters by conditioning 5+2 meetings.

The so-called agreements between Russia and the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali are barely masked annexation, blatant breach of the principles of international law and Russia‘s commitments made by President Medvedev in 2008.

We wonder if the OSCE CiO intends to react to the latest annexation of the Georgian territory when Russia and Tskhinvali signs so-called integration agreement?

Mr. President,

Fanning protracted conflicts in this corner of the world should be seen also in the context of the dismantlement of the European system of conventional arms control and confidence and security building measures. The situation is perilous. Lithuania calls for full implementation and modernisation of existing commitments, in particular the Vienna Document.

The OSCE has already made some tangible progress in its efforts to complement international processes towards enhancing transparency in cyber space. It developed Confident Building Measures (CBMs) to reduce the risks of conflict stemming from the use of ICTs. The OSCE is also contributing to debates by sharing best practices and lessons learned.

We commend the Chairmanship’s focus on implementing the Basel declaration on countering foreign terrorist fighters, and on kidnapping and hostage-taking for ransom. Good coordination among the organisations, the UN, the OSCE, the NATO, the EU, is essential. We support it.

Mr. President,

This year marks the 15th anniversary of the United National Security Council Resolution 1325 on women’s' role in peace and security. In order ensure that experiences from the OSCE region are included in the UN commissioned study, in April, 2015, Lithuania will hold a regional meeting on women, peace and security in Vilnius.

Fundamental freedoms and human rights are under threat in parts of the OSCE area. The OSCE Institutions along with the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) should take proactive stance in addressing the human rights abuses in illegally annexed Crimea as well as in the areas controlled by the armed groups in the East of Ukraine. The UN, the OSCE, the Council of Europe has to be granted a secure, safe and unrestricted access to the whole territory of Ukraine, including Crimea.

The propaganda waged by state-owned media inciting hatred and aggressive nationalism highlights the need to promote tolerance, non-discrimination and to place fundamental freedoms, especially freedom of expression and freedom of media, very high on the OSCE agenda.

We look forward to continued co-operation between the OSCE with the UN in seeking a durable solution to the European security.

I thank you, Mr. President.