02:02Austria: OSCE's chair Steinmeier condemns Istanbul attack, calls for int. cooperation
The OSCE’s new chairperson-in-office, Germany’s Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, introduced the particulars of the OSCE Chairman's programme for 2016 to the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna, Thursday. Conflict management around the globe, unresolved conflicts in OSCE areas, post-conflict rehabilitation as well as strengthening a dialogue platform among OSCE member states were the core issues of Steinmeier's speech.
The German diplomat called the recent 'terrorist' attack in Istanbul "horrible" and stated that “this 'cancer' of terrorism has no mercy to anyone including OSCE member states.” Moreover, "such a barbaric killing poses a great threat to all of us. Here, at the OSCE we stand on the side of Turkey and other states which have been affected by the terrorist threat."
“It is more than clear to us that we cannot allow ourselves to be threatened by murder and violence, instead together we have to counter terror on all levels. That is why we have to cooperate in order to counteract the escalation process in conflicts, police and the state principles of rule-of-law should help us in fighting the murderous ideology in the heads of young people,” added Steinmeier.
According to German official, we are experiencing "turbulent times" at the moment. "I'm strongly convinced that in these turbulent times of insecurity and challenges, exactly in these times, we need the OSCE," he added.
Germany took the chairmanship of the organisation on January 1 for the second time since 1991, stating that "renewing dialogue, rebuilding trust [and] restoring security" are the key priorities of its presidency. Steinmeier is now the acting chairman of the organisation. Coordinator for Intersocietal Cooperation with Russia Gernot Erler has been appointed as the special representative of the German government for the German chairmanship during 2016.
02:02The OSCE’s new chairperson-in-office, Germany’s Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, introduced the particulars of the OSCE Chairman's programme for 2016 to the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna, Thursday. Conflict management around the globe, unresolved conflicts in OSCE areas, post-conflict rehabilitation as well as strengthening a dialogue platform among OSCE member states were the core issues of Steinmeier's speech.
The German diplomat called the recent 'terrorist' attack in Istanbul "horrible" and stated that “this 'cancer' of terrorism has no mercy to anyone including OSCE member states.” Moreover, "such a barbaric killing poses a great threat to all of us. Here, at the OSCE we stand on the side of Turkey and other states which have been affected by the terrorist threat."
“It is more than clear to us that we cannot allow ourselves to be threatened by murder and violence, instead together we have to counter terror on all levels. That is why we have to cooperate in order to counteract the escalation process in conflicts, police and the state principles of rule-of-law should help us in fighting the murderous ideology in the heads of young people,” added Steinmeier.
According to German official, we are experiencing "turbulent times" at the moment. "I'm strongly convinced that in these turbulent times of insecurity and challenges, exactly in these times, we need the OSCE," he added.
Germany took the chairmanship of the organisation on January 1 for the second time since 1991, stating that "renewing dialogue, rebuilding trust [and] restoring security" are the key priorities of its presidency. Steinmeier is now the acting chairman of the organisation. Coordinator for Intersocietal Cooperation with Russia Gernot Erler has been appointed as the special representative of the German government for the German chairmanship during 2016.