OSCE - Jean-Yves Le Drian attending the Ministerial Council of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Tirana (video conference, 3-4 December 2020)

Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian will be attending the OSCE foreign ministers’ video conference being held today and tomorrow in Tirana under the chairmanship of Albania.

The minister will reaffirm the importance of abiding by the OSCE’s founding principles enshrined in the Helsinki Decalogue, especially the peaceful settlement of disputes. He will urge all member states to reengage with the spirit of the Charter of Paris, adopted 30 years ago, for a new, united and democratic Europe and to strive through dialogue to resolve conflicts, especially in Ukraine and Nagorno-Karabakh, where France has particular responsibilities within the Normandy Format and as co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group.

Read the Joint Statement by the Heads of Delegation of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair Countries (3 December 2020)

Mr. Le Drian will reiterate the need to restore the true meaning of cooperative security in Europe in three key areas: military security and arms control; defending the rule of law, human rights and basic rights, especially in regard to the situation in Belarus; and good economic and environmental governance.

He will underscore the importance of ensuring effective OSCE governance by the appointment, during this Ministerial Council of new officials serving in the Secretariat General and the OSCE’s autonomous institutions (the Representative on Freedom of the Media; the Director of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights; and the High Commissioner on National Minorities) responsible for achieving the organization’s important missions.