Council of Europe and German OSCE Chairmanship: close co-operation for European security

STRASBOURG, 3 February 2016 – Special Representative for the German Chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Gernot Erler visited the Council of Europe in Strasbourg today to present the OSCE Chairmanship’s programme for 2016.

In his address to the Committee of Ministers’ Deputies, Erler outlined the priorities of the German Chairmanship embodied by the leitmotif “Renewing Dialogue, Rebuilding Trust, Restoring Security”. Emphasizing the existing and potential synergies between the OSCE and the Council of Europe Erler said that human rights and fundamental freedoms are indispensable elements of European security. “There is no security without due respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. We need the potential and the instruments of both organizations, the OSCE and the Council of Europe, alongside each other.”

The Special Representative added that Germany was committed to the OSCE’s comprehensive concept of security and to preserving the European order based on rules and the respect for international law. He also stated that trust was currently at a low point due to the violation of this order’s core principles. Erler invited the Council of Europe to support the German Chairmanship’s efforts to re-invigorate meaningful dialogue in Europe: “Our cooperation is all the more necessary in times of crisis. Hence, we wish to deepen the existing cooperation between the OSCE and the Council of Europe in a pragmatic and targeted way.”

On behalf of the Council of Europe, Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland, said: “We will intensify our good co-operation and ensure that our actions to promote democratic security and stability in Europe remain complementary.”

Special Representative Erler also met the Chair of the Committee of Ministers’ Deputies of the Council of Europe and Ambassador of Bulgaria Katya Todorova.