Journal of the 943rd Plenary Meeting of the Permanent Council

The Chairperson, on behalf of the Permanent Council, welcomed the new Permanent Representative of Mongolia to the OSCE, Ambassador Gunaajav Batjargal, the new Permanent Representative of the European Union to the OSCE, Ambassador Thierry Béchet, the new Permanent Representative of Montenegro to the OSCE, Ambassador Slavica Milačić, and the new Permanent Representative of Afghanistan to the OSCE, Ambassador Ayoob M. Erfani. The Ambassador of Afghanistan delivered some remarks to mark the assumption of his post. Prior to taking up the agenda, the Chairperson informed the Permanent Council that the Chairperson-in-Office, in a letter (Annex 1) issued on 6 March 2013, had announced the adoption through a silence procedure of Ministerial Council Decision No. 1/13 (MC.DEC/1/13) on the extension of the mandate of the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media (statement by the Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU, Annex 2; Liechtenstein, also on behalf of Canada, Norway and Switzerland, Annex 3; Russian Federation, interpretative statement 1, United States of America, interpretative statement 2). Report by the Head of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro, Ambassador Lubomir Kopaj. Report by the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities, Dr. Halil Yurdakul Yigitgüden. Permanent Council adopted Decision No. 1075 on the OSCE 2012 year-end Unified Budget revision. State language policy in Estonia. Report on the activities of the Chairperson-in-Office. Farewell to the Permanent Representative of Portugal, Ambassador A. Martinho. International Women’s Day, observed on 8 March 2013. Meeting of the Contact Group with the Mediterranean Partners for Co-operation, held in Vienna on 1 March 2013. Parliamentary elections in Germany, to be held on 22 September 2013 (Germany, Annex 4).