OSCE chairman calls for cooperation to address regional tensions

Chairman of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Greek Prime Minister and Foreign Minister George Papandreou, called on OSCE member states to enhance cooperation to address prevailing tensions on Thursday.

In his first speech to the OSCE Permanent Council since taking over as Chairman-in-Office on Oct. 6, Papandreou identified mistrust as one of the main challenges the organization faced and called on the OSCE members to break the deadlock of mistrust.

He also referred to protracted conflicts, saying that "they are potential sources of discord, and we cannot afford to leave them on the back burner. The war in Georgia has proven this point."

The Greek chairmanship would keep searching for ways to ensure that the OSCE remains engaged in Georgia, especially in the conflict-affected areas, he said.

The OSCE mission to Georgia closed earlier this year because there was no consensus among OSCE members to renew its mandate.

The Permanent Council is one of the OSCE's decision-making bodies. It convenes weekly in Vienna to discuss developments in the OSCE area and to make appropriate decisions.

Source: Xinhua