Belgium to take over Chairmanship of OSCE on 1 January

VIENNA, 30 December 2005 - Belgium will officially take over the Chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) from Slovenia on 1 January 2006, with Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht succeeding his Slovenian counterpart, Dimitrij Rupel, as Chairman-in-Office.

Minister De Gucht will formally present the priorities of the new Chairmanship to the OSCE's 55 participating States at a meeting of the Permanent Council in Vienna on 12 January.*

Early in December, at the OSCE Ministerial Council in Ljubljana, he declared: "Our role as chair will be to assist where we can, to be on stand-by and ready to act and support when and where opportunities appear. Belgium will put its OSCE Chairmanship to full use in order to ensure that the OSCE can deliver what the international community expects it to do."

"Building a safer and more stable Europe, where the rule of law is fully respected, depends to a large extent on political circumstances and the regional environment, as well as on the willingness of the parties themselves to progress toward agreements on the frozen conflicts and their disposition to make the necessary compromises," added Minister De Gucht.

Recalling the agreement reached in Ljubljana on a "roadmap" to strengthen the effectiveness of the OSCE, the incoming Chairman-in-Office said it would be the task of the Belgian Chairmanship to carry forward the reform of the institution according to the mandate.

* An invitation to attend this meeting will be sent to media in January 2006.