Friday, 6 July 2012, Monaco
REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA SUPPORTS THE EFFORTS FOR STRENGTHENING OF THE ORGANIZATION FOR SECURITY AND CO-OPERATION IN EUROPE
The Delegation of the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA), composed of Ms. Ana Pavlova Daneva - Head of Delegation, Mr. Vladimir Gjorcev and Mr. Zijadin Sela - members of the Delegation, participated at the 21st Annual Session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly held in the Principality of Monaco from 4 to 9 July 2012.
The theme of this year's Annual Session was "The OSCE: Region of Change". Around 270 parliamentarians from more than 50 OSCE member states took part in the event.
Mr. Jean-Francois Robillon - Speaker of the National Council (Parliament) of the Principality of Monaco, the Minister of State of Monaco Mr. Michel Roger, Mr. Eamon Gilmore - Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade of Ireland and Chairman-in-Office of OSCE PA, the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Mr. Jean-Claude Mignon Petros Efthymiou, and the OSCE Secretary General Mr. Lamberto Zannier address the inaugural session.
The Chairman-in-Office of OSCE PA Mr. Eamon Gilmore, who is also Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade of Ireland, said that the aim of the Irish Chairmanship has been to elaborate a set of priorities that would ensure balance and coherence of approach across all three dimensions. Mr. Eamon Gilmore emphasised the readiness of the Irish Chairmanship to work closely with the Parliamentary Assembly in order to further the common objectives.
In his speech, the OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier highlighted the vision for the Organization set out at the Astana OSCE Summit. He said that the 40th anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act in 2015 is an excellent opportunity to provide impetus to move the Organization forward.
D-r Ana Pavlovska Daneva, Head of the Macedonian Delegation, had a presentation at the meeting of the General Committee on Political Affairs and Security. Speaking about the changes in the OSCE region, she said that the Republic of Macedonia supports the efforts for strengthening of the Organization - improving the consultative process, strengthening the transparency, efficiency and effectiveness of the OSCE institutions and missions, strengthening of the role of the OSCE Secretary General, restructuring of the legal status of OSCE, etc.
She pointed out the great importance for the Republic of Macedonia of implementation of the OSCE and ODIHR recommendations regarding the legal framework of the elections, especially now that the country is initiating changes of the Electoral Code. According to D-r Pavlova Daneva, the forthcoming local elections, which have to be organized in accordance with the OSCE recommendations and standards, are the main political priority of the country.
The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly is the parliamentary dimension of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe composed of 320 parliamentarians from the 56 participating States from Europe, Central Asia and North America. The Assembly provides a forum for parliamentary diplomacy, monitors elections, and strengthens international cooperation to uphold commitments on political, security, economic, environmental and human rights issues.