Russia says OSCE is mired in a 'serious crisis' - Update
Madrid - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday expressed pessimism
over the state of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE), saying an annual meeting which was concluding in Madrid had failed to
"overcome a serious crisis."The human rights and security body had been unable
to follow the example of other international organizations in adopting reforms
and in adapting to new times, Lavrov said during the meeting which brought
together more than 40 foreign ministers from 56 OSCE countries.
There had been no response to Russian proposals to reform the OSCE, which some
countries or groups of countries were using for their own benefit, Lavrov said,
without naming the United States or other Western countries.
"Some partners have not moved one millimetre," the minister charged,
complaining that "such talks have no meaning."
The OSCE still had no charter clarifying questions such as the role of
electoral observers and field missions, Lavrov observed.
The minister denied accusations that Russia was trying to weaken the OSCE's
election monitoring body ODIHR, which is boycotting the Russian parliamentary
elections on Sunday.
The West suspects Russia of having barred OSCE observers from the elections
with bureaucratic obstacles, but Lavrov said Russia wanted to boost the ODIHR
mandate which had been "watered down."
Lavrov backed Kazakhstan's bid to chair the OSCE, saying Moscow would have
preferred Astana to take over already in 2009, instead of doing so only after
Greece in 2010, as has been proposed by the Spanish OSCE presidency.
The US and several other countries have frowned on the Kazakh bid because of
doubts over the country's democratic credentials. The next country to chair the
OSCE will be Finland, which is taking over from Spain on January 1.
The two-day meeting has been overshadowed by disputes between Moscow and
Washington, which have accused each other of weakening the OSCE.
Russia accuses the West of using the OSCE to promote its political interests by
focusing on human rights and democracy issues, while the US suspects Russia of
trying to undermine democracy within the OSCE.
No progress was reported on the possible extension of the OSCE mandate in
Kosovo, which Russia opposes if the province declares independence unilaterally
from Serbia, or on Russia's plans to scrap the 1990 Conventional Forces in
Europe (CFE) arms control treaty.
Lavrov said on Thursday that a "fragmentation" was threatening Europe whose
security architecture could collapse.
Belgian Foreign Minister Karel de Gutch also expressed "concern" over the state
of the OSCE on Friday, saying that a continuing lack of agreement "has led to
an erosion of our achievements."
Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos said late Thursday that it
might be difficult for the OSCE to approve a joint declaration, though the
Spanish presidency would issue one of its own.
Decisions by the OSCE require unanimity, and its members have not issued a
joint political declaration since 2002.
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