Representative to the Latvian-Russian Military Pensioners' Commission

Basic decisions

On 30 April 1994 Latvia and Russia signed an Agreement on the Social Welfare of Retired Military Personnel of the Russian Federation and their Family Members Residing on the Territory of the Republic of Latvia.

Article 2 of the above Agreement stipulates that questions relating to the application of its provisions, including the stipulated rights of persons to whom the agreement applies, may be submitted by either Party for joint consideration by authorized representatives appointed for this purpose by the Latvian Party and the Russian Party, as well as by the representative or representatives of the CSCE.

At the 27th CSO Meeting on 15 June 1994, participating States welcomed requests made by Latvia and Russia for CSCE assistance in the implementation of the above Agreement and asked the Permanent Committee to work out the necessary modalities.

Establishment: Permanent Council Decision No. 17, 23 February 1995.

Tasks

At its 9th Plenary Meeting on 23 February 1995, the Permanent Council reached a decision (PC.DEC/17) on the modalities for the OSCE Representative and Alternate Representative*, mandated with the tasks to:

  • Consider, together with the representatives of the Latvian and Russian Parties, appeals on matters involving the rights of persons to whom the Agreement applies;
  • Participate in the adoption of recommendations and decisions on the basis of consensus;
  • Consider, at the request of either of the Parties, questions relating to the application of the provisions of the Agreement and the Protocol thereto, including the rights of the persons to whom the Agreement applies, as laid down therein.

* This decision supersedes an earlier decision adopted by the Permanent Committee on 30 June 1994 on the same subject.

Deployment

In Decision No. 17 of 23 February 1995, the Permanent Council stipulated that the OSCE Representative and Alternate Representative are appointed by the Chairman-in-Office, with the approval of the Parties. In the course of the mandate of the OSCE Mission to Latvia they may be chosen from among the personnel of the Mission.

During the mandate of the OSCE Mission to Latvia, the office of the OSCE Representative and Alternate Representative were co-located with the OSCE Mission.

Duration

No limitations as to the duration of the Representative's work have been set.

Composition

Until the closure of the OSCE Mission to Latvia, the Head of Mission, Ambassador Peter Semneby (Sweden), was the OSCE Representative to the Joint Commission. On 10 July 2002, Helmut Napiontek (Germany) was appointed by the OSCE Chairmanship as the new OSCE Representative to the Joint Commission.

Financial implications

The OSCE Unified Budget for 2010, adopted on 22 December 2009 (PC.DEC/923), established the budget of the Representative at EUR 9,300.