OSCE and UN recommit to strengthening co-operation

The OSCE and the UN Secretariat in New York finalized an agreement to strengthen co-operation on addressing key challenges to international peace and security, and on promoting respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms and the rule of law.

In the reinforced agreement, endorsed by the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Slovak Foreign and European Affairs Minister, Miroslav Lajčák; OSCE Secretary General, Thomas Greminger; and the UN Secretary-General António Guterres, leaders of both organizations committed to seeking joint, effective, and co-operative solutions to cope with the rapid changes in regional and global security environments.

“The world around both the UN and the OSCE is changing. The threats facing us are more complex; more transnational. We need to ensure strong, complementary partnerships between the UN and the OSCE,” stressed Foreign Minister Lajčák. “Not just through our conferences or events in New York or Vienna, but above all in the field. Because that is where our efforts have the most impact on people – and people should be our focus, particularly as we celebrate Human Rights Day,” he added.

The OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger noted that the agreement reached marks an important milestone in enhancing the long-standing partnership between the OSCE and the UN. “Thanks to increased information exchange and knowledge sharing, we will enhance the effectiveness of our respective efforts to achieve shared goals related to peace, security, development and human rights,” he said.

The Joint Statement, to supplement the 1993 Framework for Cooperation and Coordination between the United Nations Secretariat and the OSCE, calls for enhanced co-ordination and synergies between the OSCE and the UN though regular high-level engagements and strengthening existing co-ordination mechanisms.

The Framework laid the groundwork for over two decades of mutually beneficial co-operation between the two organizations.