OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President meets Secretary General, addresses Permanent Council

Challenges faced by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and ways to address them through inclusivity, visibility and co-operation were the key topics of a meeting between the OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier and the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Ranko Krivokapic today in Vienna.

They discussed the latest political developments in the OSCE region, such as upcoming elections in Kosovo where the OSCE will facilitate voting in four northern municipalities. Discussions also covered co-operation between OSCE structures in ensuring democratic elections and the involvement of the Parliamentary Assembly in the development of the Helsinki+40 process of defining the Organization’s further work post 2015.

Earlier in the day, Krivokapic addressed the OSCE Permanent Council, a key decision-making body bringing together all 57 participating States of the Organization. He outlined his vision of the current and future prospects for the Organization’s development, and stressed the need to give a “more decisive role” in the OSCE to parliamentarians in order to “enhance the transparency and legitimacy of the Organization”.

“I am certain that if our whole Organisation were to believe in itself as much as the youngest members and partnership countries today believe in the OSCE, it can lead us to long-lasting democratic prosperity throughout the OSCE world and beyond,” Krivokapic said.

Ranko Krivokapic (Montenegro) was elected President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly at the 2013 Annual Session in Istanbul.