ATHENS, 30 November 2009 - Foreign ministers and high level representatives of the OSCE 56 participating States will meet to discuss the future of European security at the OSCE Ministerial Council which starts in Athens tomorrow.

Representing the Greek OSCE Chairmanship, Alternate Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas, told journalists today that the meeting comes at a critical moment and underlined the importance of a co-operative approach to address European security's challenges: "The Greek OSCE Chairmanship launched the Corfu Process this year to foster an open and honest dialogue on the challenges and new threats for our security in the 21st century."

"As the only regional security organization to bring together the United States, Canada and Europe, including the Russian Federation and the rest of the former Soviet Union, the OSCE is a natural forum for this dialogue," said Droutsas.

The OSCE Foreign Ministers will adopt decisions and give political guidelines on a wide range of topics encompassing all three OSCE dimensions; the OSCE Ministerial Council, which will be attended by more than 45 ministers and 57 delegations, is held annually and is the central decision-making and governing body of the OSCE.

Video of the opening and closing sessions of the 17th OSCE Ministerial Council, as well as the concluding news conference, can be viewed here: 17th OSCE Ministerial Council, Athens, 1-2 December 2009