Hamburg hosts annual meeting of OSCE Ministerial Council

Baku. 8 December. REPORT.AZ/ The 23rd OSCE Ministerial Council, gathering some 50 Foreign Ministers from across the OSCE region kicked off in the German city of Hamburg, at the invitation of the 2016 OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

Report informs, Azerbaijani Minister of Foreign Affairs Elmar Mammadyarov also attended the meeting.

The Ministerial Council is the culmination of the German OSCE Chairmanship’s efforts to strengthen the OSCE in the face of growing security threats. The Chairmanship’s work in 2016 was guided by three key objectives: “Renewing dialogue, rebuilding trust, restoring security”.

Foreign Ministers will focus on efforts to settle existing conflicts in the OSCE area, in particular regarding the crisis in and around Ukraine, strengthening the OSCE’s capacities in civilian crisis management, reviving conventional arms control as well as empowering the OSCE to effectively address new global challenges. The Council will also set the course for the future work of the OSCE with Austria taking over the Chairmanship from 1 January 2017.