Secretary General of GUAM addresses OSCE Permanent Council

VIENNA, 17 May 2012 – Ambassador Valeri Chechelashvili, the Secretary General of the Organization for Democracy and Economic Development (GUAM), outlined the current priorities of his organization in an address to the OSCE Permanent Council.

“The main goal of GUAM is to establish a space of stability and integration in the Black Sea –Caspian Sea region; a space of partnership, based on European standards, criteria and practice,” he said.

“We believe that this stage of our development is particularly important. We are engaged in the active process of generating and implementing GUAM projects and programmes of co-operation,” he added.

The main project areas of GUAM – whose membership consists of OSCE participating States Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova –  include a free trade zone, fighting organized crime, joint tourism initiatives, transport and energy, Chechelashvili said.