OSCE Chairman says work of Minorities Commissioner crucial for stability in OSCE countries

MADRID, 14 February 2007 - The OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos, welcomed today the work of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, Rolf Ekeus, which he described as "crucial for stability across the 56-country OSCE region."

The High Commissioner was in Madrid today to brief Minister Moratinos about the work carried out by his office.

The Chairman-in-Office particularly welcomed the work carried out by the High Commissioner focusing on the situation of minorities in OSCE participating States. He also stressed the prime role of the High Commissioner as a conflict prevention tool of the OSCE.

"The Organization has the tools and skills to respond to the new security challenges and risks of the 21st century and continues to work in full consistency with the comprehensive concept of security that has led the Helsinki Process," he said.

The High Commissioner for National Minorities is a unique OSCE institution in that it reports directly to the OSCE Chairman-in-Office in confidential reports. The High Commissioner uses "silent diplomacy" and is active in a very wide area, including Central Asia, Eastern Europe, the Western Balkans and southern Caucasus.

The position of the High Commissioner for National Minorities was created in 1992 to identify and seek early resolution of ethnic tensions that might endanger peace, stability or friendly relations between OSCE participating States.