Helsinki+50 Conference underlined the role of civil society

HELSINKI, 1 August 2025 – To mark the 50th anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act, Finland organized a high-level conference at Finlandia Hall on 31 July 2025. The conference, hosted by the OSCE Chair-in-Office, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland Elina Valtonen, paid tribute to the legacy of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE) held in Helsinki in 1975 and highlighted the role of civil society in advancing the OSCE’s principles and commitments. The Helsinki+50 Fund was launched as part of the Conference to support the OSCE’s operational capacity.

“What made the signing of the Helsinki Final Act truly groundbreaking was the recognition that security is not merely a matter between states—it is inseparable from the rights of individuals. The Final Act redefined security, expanding it beyond military considerations to encompass human rights, economic co-operation, and environmental protection. We must uphold the core of the OSCE: shared commitments, open dialogue, and the essential voice of civil society,” said Minister Valtonen.

The event at Finlandia Hall was opened by Minister Valtonen and High-Level Keynotes were delivered by President of the Republic of Finland Alexander Stubb, OSCE Secretary-General Feridun H. Sinirlioğlu, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk and Interim Executive Director of Human Rights Watch Federico Borello. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke at the conference via remote connection. UN Secretary-General António Guterres sent a video message.

The other speakers at the conference included Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andrii Sybiha, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia Batmunkh Battsetseg, Minister of State for Europe of the UK Stephen Doughty, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Slovenia Tanja Fajon, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Malta Ian Borg, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Albania Igli Hasani, Minister delegate for Europe of France Benjamin Haddad, and OSCE leadership (listed here in order of appearance).

Oleksandra Matviichuk, Head of the Center for Civil Liberties, the Ukrainian human rights organization and Nobel Peace Prize laureate in 2022, and other civil society representatives and human rights defenders also spoke at the conference.

With over 1,000 registered participants, the audience included representatives of the OSCE participating States, OSCE Partners for Co-operation, OSCE executive structures, and the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, as well as representatives of civil society and international organizations.

The conference was livestreamed and the link to the recording can be found on the Ministry of Foreign Affair’s YouTube account (www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYbq8Ksya-E).

Helsinki+50 Fund

Minister Valtonen launched the Helsinki+50 Fund at the Helsinki+50 Conference on 31 July 2025. The aim of the Fund is to support the OSCE’s operational capacity and improve the strategic management of voluntary funding in the OSCE. As of today, 16 OSCE participating States and Partners for Co-operation have pledged to the Fund. The contributions by Finland, Norway, France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Austria, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, San Marino, Estonia, Malta, Thailand, Germany, and Switzerland amount already to over 16 million euros.

You can find more information on the launching of the Helsinki+50 Fund here (Updated: OSCE Chairperson-in-Office launches Helsinki+50 Fund | OSCE).

Side events

Civil society organized eight side events during the conference. They were selected according to criteria emphasising the proposals’ alignment with the Helsinki Principles.

The side events addressed a wide range of topics, including the role of civil society in peacebuilding, the future of European security and co-operation, the work of human rights defenders and efforts to combat human trafficking. The speakers at the side events represented a broad spectrum of civil society and academia from across the OSCE region.

Helsinki+50 Discussions

The Helsinki+50 Conference was followed by the Helsinki+50 Discussions on the future of the OSCE on 1 August 2025. You can find more information on the Helsinki+50 Discussions here (https://www.osce.org/chairpersonship/595546).

More information

Toni Sandell
Spokesperson and Deputy Head of the Task Force for the Finnish OSCE Chairpersonship 2025
Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland
Tel. +358 295 350 748, toni.sandell@gov.fi