OSCE Chairman sees merit in idea of building on OSCE election commitments

VIENNA, 24 February 2005 - The OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel, said on Thursday he was open to the idea of building on OSCE election commitments agreed in Copenhagen in 1990.

"Bearing in mind the fact that the OSCE Copenhagen Document is almost 15 years old, I see merit in considering whether additional commitments are needed. This is sometimes referred to as "Copenhagen Plus," he told the Winter Session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly in Vienna.

"But this process should not roll back existing commitments, or call into question the OSCE's high reputation in election-monitoring. In other words, no "Copenhagen Minus". That being said, we need to talk and to see if and how things can be improved."

The Copenhagen Document outlines basic criteria for democratic elections and provides for all participating States to invite observers from other countries to determine their compliance with OSCE commitments.

The Chairman-in-Office said he valued the election-monitoring work of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly. He also encouraged parliamentarians to contribute actively to the current debate on reform of the OSCE.

"The OSCE is facing a difficult moment, or an opportunity depending on how you look at it. Significant changes in Europe, with EU and NATO enlargement and new challenges to security, have changed the way that we look at security in Europe, and, as a result, the role of the OSCE."

"You have the reputation of being an incubator for fresh ideas. At a time when reform is so high on the OSCE agenda, I urge you to live up that reputation," he told the OSCE parliamentarians.

The Chairman-in-Office said it was essential for the future of the OSCE that the current impasse over the 2005 budget and new scales of contribution should be ended soon. "The current situation is untenable," he added.