TIRANA, 4 August 2005 - The OSCE Presence in Albania and the Albanian Institute for International Studies will tomorrow commemorate the 30th Anniversary of the signing of the Helsinki Final Act, the basic document of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE).

The anniversary event, which will take place at the Hotel Rogner Europapark, in Tirana, on Friday, 5 August, at 13.00, will be addressed by the President of Albania, H.E. Alfred Moisiu, and to be introduced by the Head of the OSCE Presence, Ambassador Pavel Vacek. Other participants will include Albanian state officials, representatives of civil society, media and the diplomatic community.

The Helsinki Final Act, which was originally signed by 35 Heads of State or Government in Helsinki, Finland on 1 August 1975, was the first comprehensive document addressing European security, putting the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms on the same platform as politico-military security concerns.

Following the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union, the CSCE participating States adopted the Charter for a New Europe at the Paris 1992 Summit, a landmark document that took account of the changed security environment in Europe. In the same document, the CSCE agreed to strengthen its institutional capacities and sent out its first field missions.

Reflecting the development from a Conference to a full-fledged international organization, the participating States renamed the CSCE to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe from 1 January 1995. Today, the OSCE comprises 55 participating States, employs some 3,500 staff and has a total budget of 168.6 million euros.

Albania joined the Organization on 19 June 1991 and signed the Helsinki Final Act on 16 September 1991. In 1997, it invited the OSCE to establish a Presence to assist the country in its democratic transition. Since then, Albania has gradually progressed towards international standards and the Presence has accordingly narrowed its mandate and reduced its size and budget.

Media representatives are invited to attend the address of President Moisiu and the introduction of Ambassador Vacek.