MINSK, 8 July (BelTA) - Belarus is interested in reliable regional security mechanisms in the OSCE area, Chairman of the Standing Commission for International Affairs of the House of Representatives Valery Voronetsky said at the closing plenary meeting of the 28th Annual Session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, BelTA learned from Valery Voronetsky's Facebook account.
During his speech Valery Voronetsky underlined that Belarus is interested “in reducing tensions, deepening mutual trust, resolving conflicts and, eventually, developing reliable regional security mechanisms in the OSCE area”. In that connection, he drew the attention of the Parliamentary Assembly to the initiative of the Belarusian head of state to resume a large-scale international dialogue on security matters by analogy with the Helsinki Process.
Valery Voronetsky urged the participants of the session to engage in a respectful and constructive dialogue on all the current issues on the OSCE agenda, without politicization for the sake of consolidation, confidence-building, and enhancing the role of the OSCE PA in international affairs.
Members of the Parliamentary Assembly heard the reports from Treasurer Doris Barnett and OSCE PA Secretary General Roberto Montella, reports on the activities of the OSCE PA committees on migration and counter-terrorism, special representatives and OSCE PA election observation missions. During the session Giorgi Tsereteli was re-elected OSCE PA President. Three vice presidents are Azay Guliyev (Azerbaijan), Victor Paul Dobre (Romania) and Nilza de Sena (Portugal).
Luxembourg played host to the 28th Annual Session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly on 4-8 July. Its main theme was Advancing Sustainable Development to Promote Security: The Role of Parliaments. Parliamentarians discussed legislative measures to strengthen international cooperation and promote sustainable development as an important prerequisite for ensuring peace and security in the OSCE region. The Annual Session culminated in the adoption of the Luxembourg Declaration, containing recommendations to the 57 nations of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe – and to the OSCE itself – in the fields of political affairs, security, economics, environment, human rights and humanitarian questions.
