Skopje, 21 September 2023 (MIA) – OSCE Chairman-in-Office and Foreign Minister of North Macedonia Bujar Osmani, Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen, Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau, representing the OSCE Troika and the Organization’s Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid met on Thursday on the margins of the 78th session of UN General Assembly.

They discussed the current situation in the Organization, the incoming 2024 OSCE Chairmanship, but also the key challenges for OSCE field activities.

Concerning the risks caused by the Russian military aggression against Ukraine, Osmani noted that the current situation seriously affects all initiatives in the Organization, as well as the overall functionality of the OSCE. “Entering the last few, crucial months of our Chairpersonship, we have several open issues that we need to resolve," Osmani said at the meeting.

He said that with the appointment of the new Special Representative for Ukraine, Ambassador Marcel Peško, additional options for engaging the OSCE in Ukraine are also being explored, in order to respond to the needs of the people on the ground, and announced his second visit to Ukraine as OSCE Chairman-in-Office.

"We need to show unity in the face of Russian aggression that this Organization should survive. We must speak unitedly and act with a coordinated approach and common strategy for the next steps in trying to solve some of these open issues," Osmani said.

They further discussed other challenges in the broader OSCE region, such as the situation in Moldova, Armenia and Azerbaijan, as well as Central Asia.

He announced to pay a second visit to Moldova and a second visit to Central Asia in October, i.e. Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, after his visit to Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan as OSCE Chairman-in-Office in August.

Regarding the situation in Armenia and Azerbaijan, Osmani reiterated that he had productive meetings with the ministers of foreign affairs of these countries and stressed that the OSCE should play an active role in reducing tensions and the lives of the affected people.

In order to resolve all current challenges facing the OSCE, Osmani also announced a reinforced meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council at the end of the month, because, as he said, "the complex situation requires immediate attention and resolution."

At the end of the meeting with the OSCE Troika, Osmani said that until the end of the mandate of North Macedonia OSCE Chairmanship, the focus will remain on the field missions, civil organizations and above all on the people.

Photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs