SG/Inf(2001)6/ 28 February 2001
High-Level Tripartite Meeting between the UN, OSCE and the Council of Europe, as well as the European Commission, the International Organization for Migration and the International Committee of the Red Cross, Vienna, 16 February 2001
(prepared by the Council of Europe Secretariat)
Summary of the High-level Tripartite Meeting between the OSCE, the Council of Europe and the UN, as well as the European Commission, the International Organization for Migration and the International Committee of the Red Cross
Vienna, 16 February 2001
1. The High-level Tripartite Meeting was held on 16 February 2001 in the Hofburg Congress Centre, Vienna, under the chairmanship of the OSCE Secretary General, Mr Ján Kubi_. It was the 10th meeting in a series of discussions, which are chaired in turn by the Council of Europe, the UN and the OSCE. As in the past, representatives of European Commission, the International Organization for Migration and the International Committee of the Red Cross also participated in this meeting.
2. The agenda, the list of participants and the press release on the High-level meeting, as well as the summary of the Target-Oriented Meeting preceding the High-level meeting are appended to this note.
Agenda item 1 Adoption of the agenda
3. On the proposal of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe the current political situation in Ukraine was added to the agenda of the meeting and discussed under item 4.
Agenda item 2 Exchange of information on recent major meetings within the Council of Europe, the UN and the OSCE.
4. Participants exchanged information on recent high-level meetings, including the 106th and 107th Sessions of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, the 8th OSCE Ministerial Council Meeting (November 2000) and the 4th meeting of the Secretary General of the United Nations with Heads of Regional Organisations, which took place in New York (February 2001).
5. The Romanian Chairmanship of the OSCE informed participants on its objective to strengthen the political dialogue and consultations within the OSCE and to give a greater economic content to the OSCE activities in the countries in transition.
6. The Council of Europe briefed participants on enlargement of its membership through the simultaneous accession of Armenia and Azerbaijan to the Council of Europe, on the issue of abolition of the death penalty, referring in particular to the adoption of the Declaration on a European Death Penalty-free area at the 107th session of the Committee of Ministers in November 2000. The attention of the participants was also drawn to the European Conference against Racism (Strasbourg, October 2000) and to the Ministerial Conference on Human Rights (Rome, November 2000) to mark the 50th anniversary of the European Convention on Human Rights.
7. The UN representatives focused on recent initiatives within the UN system in the fields of peace-building, conflict prevention and post-conflict rehabilitation. They stressed the need for a co-ordinated speedy operational response of the international community to these problems.
Agenda item 3 Balkans, especially the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia including Kosovo and Montenegro
The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
8. The main focus of the discussions was on co-ordination of action in the FRY. The participants agreed that the established OSCE Mission to the FRY and the Council of Europe office in Belgrade should co-operate closely with the representatives of the United Nations and its specialised agencies and programmes, as well as with representatives of the European Commission in Belgrade. On the sidelines of the meeting in Vienna, the Secretaries General of the Council of Europe and the OSCE exchanged letters on the Modalities of Co-operation between the two organisations in the FRY (see press release in appendix). A follow-up meeting of the Council of Europe and the OSCE to assess the pace and quality of co-operation on the spot was envisaged this Spring.
9. Participants also welcomed a joint UN-OSCE initiative to hold an international conference under the provisional title "Lessons learnt from the Balkans " in the summer of 2002 in order to make a realistic evaluation of the experiences of the international community in the region over the last 10 years.
Kosovo
10. Participants underlined the need for full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1244 with regard to the role of each organisation active on the spot. They spoke in favour of a thorough preparation of the next elections in Kosovo and a clear definition of the exact role and status of the elected body. Co-operation between the Council of Europe, the UN and the OSCE on the spot was of practical importance and there was a good possibility of continuing working together with the OSCE on "legal aid" to residents in need. The Council of Europe could help define constitutional provisions, particularly through the Venice Commission. The participants also noted with great concern the situation in southern Serbia.
Montenegro
11. Participants expressed concern about the current relations between Serbia and Montenegro. They spoke in favour of maintaining the federation, continuation of the negotiation process and called for further international presence to observe negotiations on their future relations. Elections in Montenegro scheduled for 22 April should clarify the population's attitude to possible independence from Serbia.
Albania
12. It was noted that the international community should reach a common position and exert the necessary pressure on the Albanian parties to avoid further confrontation and polarisation of political forces in view of the forthcoming parliamentary elections.
13. The Council of Europe supplied information on the monitoring process of the situation through its presence in the field (co-located with the OSCE Mission) in order to ensure a transparent and democratic electoral process together with other international actors. The participants took note of the joint assistance of the Council of Europe and European Commission in the legal field in Albania, with specific emphasis on the implementation of legislation through their joint programme.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
14. Discussions focused on the progress towards country's accession to the Council of Europe following the November 2000 legislative and presidential elections. The participants were informed of the Council of Europe's intention to give increased political impetus to the accession procedure through a series of high-level visits to Bosnia and Herzegovina by the current and future chairs of the Committee of Ministers and possibly by the Secretary General.
Stability Pact
15. Participants reviewed their operational activities in support of the Stability Pact within the framework of all three Working Tables. The importance of holding the Regional Funding Conference due to take place next summer was underlined. The participants were informed about the series of strategy papers referring to ombudsmen, local government and public administration reform to be discussed with potential donors and relevant international institutions prior to the Conference.
Agenda item 4 Caucasus
16. Participants discussed the present situation in the both the northern and southern Caucasus. They exchanged information on a number of areas, including the possibility of pursuing a joint assessment mission in the southern Caucasus. The IOM representative proposed a meeting of the three Caucasian countries on migration problems with active participation of the international institutions possessing relevant experience in this field.
17. The contribution of the organisations attending the Vienna meeting to the enhancement of the rule of law and respect for human rights, as well as the provision of humanitarian assistance to the Chechen Republic (Russian Federation) was raised. The Council of Europe informed the participants about the work of the Council of Europe experts in the office of Mr Kalamanov in Znamenskoye, and about the decision taken at the January part-session of the Parliamentary Assembly to ratify the credentials of the new Russian delegation to the PACE. The early-deployment of the OSCE Assistance Group to Chechnya was considered important.
Armenia and Azerbaijan
18. Participants expressed their hope that these two countries after becoming member-states of the Council of Europe would continue their efforts towards reaching a solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. It was also mentioned that a Special Rapporteur Group of the Ministers Deputies had been established in order to monitor both countries' compliance with their commitments.
Ukraine
19. Participants expressed their concern at the recent political crisis in Ukraine caused by the disappearance of the journalist Gongadze. They stressed that the Gongadze case had to be seen as a test of the democratic development and of the freedom of the media in the country. They also underlined the strong interest in a stable and democratic Ukraine, fully respecting human rights and political freedoms in general.
Agenda item 5 Report on the Target-Oriented Meeting - Vienna, 15 February 2001
20. On the proposal of the OSCE a target-oriented meeting was devoted to good governance, with emphasis on two case studies (Georgia and Bosnia and Herzegovina) and on the specificities of co-operation with International Financial Institutions on issues of good governance. The role of the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) was mentioned in this respect. The summary of the report prepared by the OSCE Secretariat is appended.
Agenda item 6 Human dimension issues
21. Participants focused on intolerance, racism, trafficking in human beings (one of the priorities of the Romanian Chairmanship in the OSCE in 2001), protection of national minorities, media freedom (with special emphasis on Ukraine, Russia, Azerbaijan), the situation of Roma/Gypsies and the protection of children in civil society. All partners were very interested in enhancing co-operation in these fields in order to move forward.
Agenda item 7 Modalities of co-operation on the ground
22. Participants spoke strongly in favour of developing synergies among the organisations present at the meeting in Vienna, particularly on the ground, in order to derive the greatest possible benefit from their comparative advantages and their respective mandates. The exchange of letters endorsing mutual co-operation of the OSCE and the Council of Europe with regard to the FRY after the appropriate consultation procedures was unanimously welcomed. The participants agreed with the OSCE that the outstanding solutions to the key problems of providing security to the OSCE Assistance Group in order to speed up its planned return to Chechnya should be clarified with the Russian authorities as soon as possible. The Council of Europe could offer its experience in this regard.
23. Participants fully supported the main objective of the REACT (Rapid Expert Assistance and Co-operation Teams) concept-to deploy rapidly the civilian component of peacekeeping operations when necessary .The Council of Europe role in this respect, including post-conflict rehabilitation is increasingly recognized by other international organisations (in the Chechen Republic, the FRY, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina).
24. The OSCE informed the participants that the REACT and an Operation Centre within the OSCE Conflict Prevention Centre (CPC) will become operational in close partnership with relevant international organisations on 1 April 2001.
Agenda item 8 Any other business
25. The question of inviting other partners for co-operation within the framework of the High-level Tripartite Meeting was raised. It was generally felt that possible participation of other international institutions in future meetings on an ad-hoc basis, when discussing crisis management, conflict prevention and rehabilitation measures, could be useful for co-ordinating action to promote security and stability in Europe.
26. The next High-level Tripartite Meeting was scheduled for 2002 in Strasbourg and would be hosted by the Council of Europe.
HIGH-LEVEL TRIPARTITE MEETING
Vienna, 16 February 2001
Draft Agenda
Vienna, Friday, 16 February 2001, 10 a.m. to 5.30 p.m.
(Working lunch hosted by H.E. Ambassador Ján Kubi_, Secretary General of the OSCE, from 1 to 2.30 p.m. at the "Burgraum" of the Hofburg Congress Center Vienna)
1. Adoption of the Agenda
2. Exchange of information on recent major meetings within the CoE, OSCE and UN
3. Balkans, especially Federal Republic of Yugoslavia including Kosovo and Montenegro
4. Caucasus
5. Report on the Target Oriented Meeting of 15 February
6. Human Dimension issues, especially intolerance/racism/xenophobia and trafficking in human beings
7. Modalities of co-operation on the ground
8. Any other business, including participation of the EU/EC in the tripartite process
List of Participants
High-level Tripartite Meeting between the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the United Nations, the Council of Europe and the European Commission as well as the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Organizations for Migration
Bibliotheksaal, Hofburg Congress Centre, Vienna
16 February 2001
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
OSCE Chairmanship
H.E. Ambassador Liviu Bota Chairman of the Permanent Council, Head of the Permanent Mission of Romania to the OSCE
OSCE Secretariat
H.E. Ambassador Ján Kubi_ Secretary General
H.E. Ambassador Márton Krasznai Director, CPC
Mr. Thomas Price Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities
Ms. Johanna Pollmann-Zaal Head, Office of the Secretary General
Mr. Fredrik Schiller Head, Mission Programme Section
Dr. Monika Wohlfeld Head a.i., Section for External Co-operation
Mr. Marc Baltes Deputy Co-ordinator on Economic and Environmental Activities
Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights
Mr. Peter Eicher Deputy Director
High Commissioner on National Minorities
Mr. Carl Salicath Personal Adviser
OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media
Dr. Beate Maeder-Metcalf Senior Adviser
United Nations
United Nations Office at Geneva
Mr. Vladimir Petrovsky Director-General
Ms. Lisa Buttenheim Senior Political Adviser to the Director-General
Office of the Special Envoys for the Balkans
Mr. Carl Bildt Special Envoy for the Balkans
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
Mr. Zdzisław Kędzia Acting Chief of Programmes and Activities Branch, Office of the UNHCHR
Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees
Soren Jessen-Petersen Assistant High Commissioner
Ms. Gesche Karrenbrock Deputy Director for Eastern Europe
Mr. Hans Schodder Liaison Officer, Branch Office Vienna
Economic Commission for Europe
Ms. Danuta Hübner Executive Secretary
Mr. Geoffrey Hamilton Regional Advisor, Trade Division
United Nations Development Programme
Mr. Kalman Mizsei Assistant Administrator, Director of the Bureau for Europe and the CIS (RBEC)
Mr. Henrik Kolstrup Resident Representative, UNDP/Bosnia and Herzegovina
Department for Political Affairs
Ms. Linda Perkin Deputy Head of the Europe Division
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Mr.Franz-Josef Homann-Herimberg Senior Adviser
Mr. Steve Tull Balkans expert
Council of Europe
H.E.Mr. Walter Schwimmer Secretary General
H.E. Ambassador Georgs Andrejevs Chairman of the Ministers' Deputies, Permanent Representative of Latvia
H.E. Ambassador Johannes Dohmes Chairman of the Rapporteur Group for Democratic Stability, Permanent Representative of Germany
Mr. Hans de Jonge Director of inter-institutional co-operation and external relations, Directorate General of Political Affairs
Mr. Jack Hanning Head of the Division of relations with international organisations and non-member states, Directorate General of Political Affairs
Mr. Wladimir Pyatin Special Adviser to the Secretary General
Mr. Denis Huber Secretariat of the Committee of Ministers
European Union/European Commission
Mr. Erwan Fouéré Head, OSCE and Council of Europe Section
Mr. Alessandro Palmero Expert on good governance issues
International Committee of the Red Cross
Mr. Bertrand Kern Deputy Head of operations for Eastern Europe
Mr. Bruno Zimmermann Diplomatic Adviser International Organizations Division
International Organization for Migration
Mr. Peter Schatzer Director, Department for External Relations, Senior Regional Adviser for Europe
Mr. Andreas Halbach Regional Co-ordinator for Follow-up to the1096 Geneva Conference
Press Communique
1. Vienna, 16 February 2001 - The partners in the tripartite process, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the Council of Europe and United Nations organisations, led by the United Nations Office at Geneva, met today in Vienna at a traditional high-level meeting. As in the past, the European Commission, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Organization for Migration were also invited.
2. The aim of the tripartite process is better co-ordination of action in areas of common concern.
3. South-Eastern Europe, especially the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and the Caucasus, were the main areas discussed. The participants agreed that the newly established OSCE Mission to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Council of Europe Office in Belgrade would co-operate closely with representatives of the United Nations and its specialised agencies, offices and programmes, and representatives of the European Commission in Belgrade.
4. In particular, the participants agreed that Kosovo wide elections should be thoroughly prepared and that the exact role and status of the elected body should be defined before taking a decision on the date for the elections. The participants also noted with great concern the situation in southern Serbia. They expressed concern about the political situation in Albania, and noted that in view of the elections to be held this year, it was high time for political parties, including those in the opposition, to seek common ground.
5. On the situation in the Caucasus, participants discussed the present situation in both the north and the south of the region, and decided to pursue closer co-operation and exchange information in a number of areas, including the possibility to launch joint projects and pursue a joint assessment mission in south Caucasus. Participants noted that the Council of Europe recently welcomed Armenia and Azerbaijan as members.
6. The participants also considered a report on the Target-oriented Meeting at expert level on good governance held on 15 February 2001 in Vienna, under the chairmanship of the OSCE.
7. Human Dimension issues, especially intolerance, racism, xenophobia and trafficking in human beings also figured prominently on the agenda of the meeting.
8. The participants also exchanged information on recent major meetings within the CoE, OSCE and UN, paying special attention to the 4th Meeting of the UN and Regional Organizations held in New York, 6-7 February 2001.
9. On the sidelines of the meeting, the CoE Secretary General and the OSCE Secretary General concluded the exchange of letters between the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and the Council of Europe on Modalities of Co-operation in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
10. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the host of this meeting, was represented by the Secretary General and a Representative of the OSCE Chairmanship. The OSCE delegation further included representatives of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the High Commissioner for National Minorities (HCNM), and the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media (RFM).
11. The United Nations delegation included, in addition to the Director-General of UNOG: the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Balkans, the Executive Secretary or the Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE), the Assistant High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Assistant Administrator of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Representatives of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR), UN Department for Political Affairs (UNDPA), the Peace-Keeping Department (UNDPKO) and the Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) also participated.
12. The delegation of the Council of Europe, led by the Secretary General, included, among others, the Chairman of the Ministers' Deputies, the Chairman of the Rapporteur Group for Democratic Stability, Director of inter-institutional co-operation and external relations, Directorate General of Political Affairs, and the Head of the Division of relations with international organisations and non-member states, Directorate General of Political Affairs.
13. The next high-level tripartite meeting will be hosted by the Council of Europe in 2002 in Strasbourg.
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
The Secretariat
Kärntner Ring 5-7, 1010 Vienna, Austria
For information - not an official document
Press Release
OSCE and Council of Europe exchange letters of co-operation on FRY
1. VIENNA, 16 February 2001 - The Secretary General of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), Jan Kubis, and the Secretary General of the Council of Europe (CoE), Walter Schwimmer, yesterday exchanged letters endorsing mutual co-operation of the two organizations with regards to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY). The agreement identifies areas of close co-operation and co-ordination between the heads of the respective operations in Belgrade, including their work programmes.
2. The two organizations agreed to co-operate in efforts to strengthen the protection of human rights, the rule of law, democratic institutions and civil society. They will focus, in particular, on minority issues, media, civil society and institution-building in the fields of the judiciary and law-enforcement, including the reform of the penitentiary system.
3. The Council of Europe and the OSCE both share the common goal of integrating the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia into European structures, and have further agreed to exchange information regularly on their respective monitoring activities.
4. On 9 November 2000 the FRY submitted a request to accede to the Council of Europe and to a number of its fundamental instruments. The Council of Europe's priority in the FRY is to assist the authorities and the society in meeting the requirements of membership, in particular the ratification of the European Convention on Human Rights. The FRY became a participating State of the OSCE on 10 November 2000; subsequently, on 11 January 2001 the OSCE Permanent Council decided to deploy a mission to the FRY. The mission's mandate is to provide assistance and expertise to the Yugoslav authorities at all levels, as well as to interested individuals, groups and organizations, in all areas of the Organization's activities.
Preliminary report on TOM on good governance
15 February 2001, Vienna
Draft summary to follow
Dr. Monika Wohlfeld
1. The TOM, this time on good governance, of 15 February 2001, was called by the OSCE, according to the rotational principle which gives the OSCE, Council of Europe, and UNOG in turn the responsibility for Tripartite meetings in any format. Participation in target-oriented meetings varies according to the topic, and included this time, apart from the OSCE, Council of Europe, and the UN organizations led by UNOG, the European Commission, the World Bank and the OECD.
2. The meeting was co-chaired by the Director of the CPC and the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities.
3. The focus was the discussion on two specific case studies: Georgia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The background papers on these two case studies were sent to participants prior to the meeting.
4. Furthermore, the co-ordination of international action regarding the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was discussed.
5. Almost surprisingly, the participants agreed to a working definition of good governance, proposed with a view allowing a focused discussion. The main components of good governance are transparency and access to information, rule of law and public participation, accountability and predictability.
6. There was also agreement on the broad scope of the concept of good governance, which includes inter alia political, legal, rule of law, economic, social and other areas, although quite often this term is used to cover only corruption issues.
7. It was also underlined that the OSCE is particularly well placed to address the multiplicity of factors that constitute essential elements in building a democratic society with a functioning economy.
8. A further aspect where there was common agreement was the need to define regional, or as others put it - thematic approaches to good governance issues, and not to focus on individual states, many of which are coping with externalities.
9. Participants agreed that civil societies and NGOs had an important role to play in brining about good governance.
10. However, the participants differed somewhat on a number of various issues.
11. First, they differed somewhat in the evaluation of the situation of the two countries used as case studies.
12. Secondly, there was a discussion on the notion of "ownership" - with some favouring an approach which would give the countries in question the responsibility for management and co-ordination of efforts of the international community, and others cautioning that this might be difficult in cases of failed governments or corrupt governments. It was argued that international organizations should encourage countries in transition to take ownership of their own destiny, while making international organizations part of the process. The corresponding challenge for international organizations is to help to bridge the gap between the beginning of the transition process and the transfer of ownership.
13. The meeting did not finish on a self-congratulatory note, but rather with the realization that
- the meeting had achieved the objective of raising awareness
- international organizations and international financial organizations can still learn from each other.
- this topic deserves increased attention and requires close co-ordination among the various international organizations and international financial institutions
14. This exercise should be continued, maybe in smaller groups.
15. The subject of the forthcoming OSCE Economic Forum, to be held in Prague from 15 to 18 May 2001, will also be "Transparency and Good Governance in Economic Matters".
Internet : www.coe.int/sg/e/