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IHF Publications IHF Yearly Campaign IHF Activities Priority Regions and Countries 2006 - 2007
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APPENDICES
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appendix i
The 11th OSCE Ministerial Council
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The OSCE
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the largest regional security organization in the world with 55 participating states from Europe, Central Asia and North America. It is active in early warning, conflict prevention, crisis management and post-conflict rehabilitation.
The OSCE approach to security is comprehensive and cooperative: comprehensive in dealing with a wide range of security-related issues including arms control, preventive diplomacy, confidence- and security-building measures, human rights, democratisation, election monitoring and economic and environmental security; co-operative in the sense that all OSCE-participating states have equal status, and decisions are based on consensus.
The OSCE Ministerial Council
During periods between OSCE summits, decision-making and governing power lies with the Ministerial Council, whose members are the Foreign Ministers of the OSCE-participating states.
The Ministerial Council itself was established by the Charter of Paris for a New Europe (1990) under the original name of "Council of Ministers for Foreign Affairs". The 1992 Helsinki Document reaffirmed its role as the central decision-making and governing body of the OSCE and gave it more extensive powers in the field of conflict prevention and crisis management. The 1994 Budapest Document renamed it "Ministerial Council" and fully confirmed its pivotal political role.
The 11th OSCE Ministerial Council
The OSCE Ministerial Council meets once a year towards the end of every term of chairmanship to consider issues relevant to the OSCE and take appropriate decisions. The 11th OSCE Ministerial Council met in Maastricht (the Netherlands) on December 1-2, 2003, under the Netherlands OSCE Chairmanship.
On occasion of the thMinisterial Council the following declarations and decisions were made:
- OSCE Strategy to address threats to security and stability in the twenty first century
- OSCE Strategy document for the Economic and Environmental Dimension
- Decision No. 1 - The Annual Report
- Decision No. 2 - Combating Trafficking in Human Beings
- Decision No. 3 - Action plan on Improving the Situation of Roma and Sinti within the OSCE Area
- Decision No. 4 - Tolerance and Non- discrimination
- Decision No. 5 - Elections
- Decision No. 6 - Terms of reference for the OSCE Counter-Terrorism Network
- Decision No. 7 - Travel Document Security
- Decision No. 8 - Man Portable Air Defence Systems
- Decision No. 9 - OSCE Document on stockpiles of conventional ammunition
- Decision No.10 - OSCE Chairmanship in the year 2006
- Decision No.11 - Time and place of the next meeting of the OSCE Ministerial Council
- Permanent Council Decision No. 570 Forwarding of draft documents to the Ministerial Council
- Permanent Council Decision No. 571 - broadening dialogue with Asian and Mediterranean Partners
More information
For speeches, declarations and decisions: www.osce.org/events/mc/netherlands2003/
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