A first meeting of the EU Troika and the OSCE took place on Tuesday, 23 January 2007 within the context of the General Affairs and External Relations Council. Günter Gloser, Minister of State for Europe, Javier Solana, High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, and Manuel Lobo Antunes, Portuguese State Secretary for European Affairs, represented the EU Troika.
The OSCE was represented by Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Ángel Moratinos, who is currently the Chairman-in-Office. Other participants included Anne Sipilainen, Deputy Director General of the Finnish Foreign Ministry's Political Department, on behalf of Finland, which will chair the OSCE next year, and Pierre Chevalier, the Special Envoy of last year's Chairman-in-Office, Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht.
Marc Perrin de Brichambaut, OSCE Secretary General and Head of the OSCE Secretariat, was also present.
The EU and the OSCE intend to strengthen their cooperation particularly in Central Asia. Promoting stability, democracy and economic growth are key priorities for us in this region, which is important not only because of security and energy considerations. Minister of State Gloser said that the objectives of the German EU Presidency and the Spanish OSCE Chairman-in-Office for Central Asia have much in common.
A further goal is to cooperate more intensively in tackling the regional conflicts in the Southern Caucasus and Transnistria. The aim is to bring about a peaceful solution to these conflicts which would pave the way for democratic and economic development.
Another focus of the talks was cooperation in the Balkans and specifically in Kosovo. UN Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari will soon submit his proposals for a solution to the status issue. The international community and particularly the Europeans will have to shoulder considerable responsibility in implementing the status solution. We will be called upon to support the development of a functional society in Kosovo. The EU and the OSCE are committed to working closely together to achieve this.
