MINSK, 22 January (BelTA) - Belarus believes that the Board of Peace is not an alternative to existing international organizations, the Belarusian delegation to the OSCE Permanent Council said in a statement issued in connection with U.S. President Donald Trump's initiative to establish the Board of Peace, BelTA learned from the press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“Belarus believes that the Board of Peace is not an alternative to existing international organizations. It has the potential to become a platform of a new type: free from bloc discipline, sanctions blackmail, and ideological exclusivity,” Belarus's Permanent Representative to the OSCE Andrei Dapkiunas stated.
He noted that the bold and timely initiative by the U.S. leader has elicited varied reactions worldwide. Alongside expressions of interest and support, there are also cautious voices of alarm and suspicion. Concerns have been raised about potential competition that this new type of prospective international structure might pose to bureaucratically entrenched multilateral international mechanisms, including entities such as the UN and the OSCE.
“This widespread international reaction reveals a serious problem - a psychologically understandable unpreparedness, and perhaps even unwillingness, of many national elites to adapt to a radically changed world. An unpreparedness and unwillingness to acknowledge the obvious: the former architecture of security, arms control, and cooperation has been shattered. An unpreparedness and unwillingness to take responsibility for practical steps toward building a durable peace,” Andrei Dapkiunas said.
He emphasized that the numerous international alliances, communities, and coalitions proclaimed in recent years share one common feature. They are all set to have comfortable and convenient communication among like-minded individuals. “Unfortunately, none of these coalitions envisions creating conditions for dialogue among partners whose views may seriously diverge. Today, these coalitions are largely bound by a logic of military escalation and forceful confrontation,” the Belarusian diplomat stated. “In desperation, appealing to principles and mechanisms that are no longer functional, these coalitions generate movement in the media but do nothing to affect the chances of ending conflicts and establishing peace.”
“The uniqueness of the initiative to create the Board of Peace lies in the fact that, for the first time in the last 50 years, it proposes the establishment of an international organization that unites states which are far from being like-minded on everything, but which are united in their support for world peace,” the Belarusian statement reads. “President Trump's initiative is an invaluable hint for the OSCE: either the participating states, that are divided by a chasm of misunderstanding and hostility, ultimately utilize the OSCE mechanisms for equal and respectful dialogue, or the organization simply fades into oblivion.”
“Belarus believes that the Board of Peace is not an alternative to existing international organizations. It has the potential to become a platform of a new type: free from bloc discipline, sanctions blackmail, and ideological exclusivity,” Belarus's Permanent Representative to the OSCE Andrei Dapkiunas stated.
He noted that the bold and timely initiative by the U.S. leader has elicited varied reactions worldwide. Alongside expressions of interest and support, there are also cautious voices of alarm and suspicion. Concerns have been raised about potential competition that this new type of prospective international structure might pose to bureaucratically entrenched multilateral international mechanisms, including entities such as the UN and the OSCE.
“This widespread international reaction reveals a serious problem - a psychologically understandable unpreparedness, and perhaps even unwillingness, of many national elites to adapt to a radically changed world. An unpreparedness and unwillingness to acknowledge the obvious: the former architecture of security, arms control, and cooperation has been shattered. An unpreparedness and unwillingness to take responsibility for practical steps toward building a durable peace,” Andrei Dapkiunas said.
He emphasized that the numerous international alliances, communities, and coalitions proclaimed in recent years share one common feature. They are all set to have comfortable and convenient communication among like-minded individuals. “Unfortunately, none of these coalitions envisions creating conditions for dialogue among partners whose views may seriously diverge. Today, these coalitions are largely bound by a logic of military escalation and forceful confrontation,” the Belarusian diplomat stated. “In desperation, appealing to principles and mechanisms that are no longer functional, these coalitions generate movement in the media but do nothing to affect the chances of ending conflicts and establishing peace.”
“The uniqueness of the initiative to create the Board of Peace lies in the fact that, for the first time in the last 50 years, it proposes the establishment of an international organization that unites states which are far from being like-minded on everything, but which are united in their support for world peace,” the Belarusian statement reads. “President Trump's initiative is an invaluable hint for the OSCE: either the participating states, that are divided by a chasm of misunderstanding and hostility, ultimately utilize the OSCE mechanisms for equal and respectful dialogue, or the organization simply fades into oblivion.”
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