2016 in Review: OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Steinmeier
2016 OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier reviews the highlights and challenges of the OSCE Chairmanship.
Watch the video and read the transcript below.
What has the OSCE Chairmanship meant for Germany?
Practically speaking such a Chairmanship is a huge project. We have organized and realized more than 300 events in Vienna, in Berlin and throughout the OSCE area.
For example, the Informal Meeting of Foreign Ministers in Potsdam. But also a large conference on “connectivity” here in Berlin as well as another conference on Tolerance that also took place in Berlin. And then, of course, there was the grand finale, the Ministerial Council in Hamburg.
Politically speaking, I think we have sent at least one clear signal: in these stormy times, times of major change in the international order, in which we see a re-emergence of nationalism in many places, we remain committed to effective multilateral organizations. This is much more than a verbal commitment - we also stand ready to actively take on responsibility.
What were the most moving or memorable moments for you during your Chairmanship year?
Certainly, travelling creates the liveliest memories. There have been visits this year I found unique – despite my long experience as foreign minister. For example the trip to Transdniestria. Or the visit that I made together with my French colleague Jean-Marc Ayrault to Kramatorsk at the line of contact in the Donbas region.
There, we could observe personally the hard work done by the members of the Special Monitoring Mission. I have always had great respect for the many men and women that give their best every day in a really difficult security environment. This respect has even grown since I have seen their situation with my own eyes and since I have personally spoken with the Monitors.
And yes, there are also memories of a less positive sort: we have had long rounds of negotiations with very detailed discussions among the 57 participating States. In order to successfully weather these discussions, one needs strong nerves and, above all, great stamina. But in the end of the day, I believe that precisely this commitment makes a crucial difference.
What were for you the most challenging moments of the Chairmanship?
We knew we would assume the Chairmanship in turbulent times. Many conflicts and crises have kept us busy, just as we expected. There were and still are serious threats to peace and security. The question of war and peace has returned to the European continent and to the OSCE area, after the annexation of Crimea and the armed hostilities in and around eastern Ukraine. This has of course left clear marks on our Chairmanship. Crisis management took an extremely large space in our discussions, more than we had wished. You can imagine how difficult the meetings were and how they were often marked by controversies.
An issue that occupied us over and over again, with great urgency and on different levels, was of course the ongoing conflict in and around Ukraine, including the important role of the OSCE in the Special Monitoring Mission and as mediator in the Trilateral Contact Group.
But also the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that has perhaps not been in the limelight of the European public for a while gained a prominent role this year after new escalations had occurred this spring. The OSCE’s conflict settlement efforts there were important to create room for de-escalation. Hopefully this opens opportunities for talks on a political solution.
What are you most proud of? Any regrets?
It goes without saying that each Chairmanship would always wish for even more far-reaching outcomes.
But what can I be proud of? That is my team, to start with. The colleagues in the OSCE Task Force in the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin and in the German OSCE Mission in Vienna. They have my gratitude and my respect for their good and committed work. Work that, as matter of principle, makes forging consensus among 57 participating States a constant necessity.
Of course, I am also thankful for the work done by the OSCE Secretariat and by the many women and men in the field missions who are facing not easy conditions day by day. This is something to take pride in.
I see also as a reason for pride that we managed to establish new topics and themes for the OSCE, despite all those hard controversies and difficult debates. Take for example the initiative on arms control. And I also believe that with the conference on connectivity we have managed for the first time to get business representatives really involved into this OSCE process. Perhaps we have created opportunities to identify fields of common interest more easily that in the past.
In concluding I will also not forget events such as the one with Daniel Barenboim and his West-Eastern Divan Orchestra who opened our conference on Tolerance and Diversity. With this, we have put topical and pressing questions on the OSCE agenda.
What advice would you give to your successor, the incoming Chairperson-in-Office?
I wish my colleague Sebastian Kurz the best of luck for a task which is honorable, but, as I have learned, not always rewarding. And I wish him all the patience that one needs to bring discussions to a substantial result.
In any case, I can guarantee that the new Chairmanship can count on our support in this difficult quest. As part of the Troika, we stand ready to provide advice and assistance if desired.
Please note that the English translation has been simplified for the purpose of subtitles. You can find the full original transcript in German here.