Peaceful settlement of disputes focus of OSCE Court of Conciliation and Arbitration visit to Stockholm

The Bureau members of the OSCE Court of Conciliation and Arbitration concluded their visit to Stockholm, which was organized upon the invitation of Ambassador Carl Magnus Nesser, Director-General for Legal Affairs of the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, on 3 May 2022.

Bureau members met with Representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and members of academia to discuss the OSCE Court of Conciliation and Arbitration potential in the realm of peaceful settlement of disputes. They also met with State Secretary Magnus Nilsson to address the Court’s opportunities and current challenges. Discussions allowed assessment of the current situation and consideration of new and innovative ideas on the Court’s future role, in particular in view of the commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Convention on Conciliation and Arbitration within the OSCE, adopted in December 1992 in Stockholm.

A seminar on conflict resolution within the OSCE was co-organized by the Swedish OSCE Network. Ambassador Anders Bjurner and Ambassador Petra Lärke spoke about conflict resolution in the OSCE region and the experiences of the Swedish Chairpersonship-in-Office in this regard.

In his keynote address, President of the OSCE Court of Conciliation and Arbitration, Emmanuel Decaux, stated: “We must invent the future together. In view of the 30th anniversary of the Stockholm Convention, we need to devise a ‘Stockholm+30’ that is a real action plan, a comprehensive strategy involving all the ‘friends of the Convention’. This begins with small steps, and a positive signal that dispute settlement remains an integral part of the OSCE and a concrete sign of hope for the entire continent.”

The Court of Conciliation and Arbitration provides a set of mechanisms for the peaceful settlement of disputes between States. To date, 34 States have ratified the Convention. Sweden is the Depositary State.