Thursday, December 29 2016 11:30

ArmInfo.Reducing the intensity of existing conflicts is one of the top priorities of Austria's OSCE chairmanship, Austria's Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz, who will chair the OSCE starting from 2017 when his country takes over the OSCE presidency from Germany, says in an interview with APA. 

He says that military confrontations that have already caused  thousands of victims, displacement and destruction in the OSCE area  are one of the main security challenges facing Europe today.

"As Chairperson-in-Office I will personally travel to the affected  regions, so as to get a first-hand impression of the situation on the  ground. Our Chairmanship will support the established OSCE formats  aiming at a peaceful resolution of existing conflicts, including  through our special representatives. We are regularly briefed by the  co-Chairs of the Minsk Group and we are in regular contact with the  parties, so as to closely follow the situation on the ground and  better understand the different positions. Together with our  international partners in the OSCE, we are very clear that there can  only be a peaceful solution to this conflict - and working in this  direction is our main priority," APA quotes Kurz as saying. 

When speaking of the April events in the Karabakh conflict zone and  the measures aimed at preventing such incidents, the Austrian Foreign  Minister says: "On 5 April 2016, Austria, as incoming Chair of the  OSCE, joined representatives of the OSCE Minsk Group countries in a  statement concerning the escalation of the conflict. We strongly  condemned the outbreak of unprecedented violence along the Line of  Contact, and urged both sides to cease using force immediately. We  also stressed that there can only be a peaceful solution to the  conflict, something I have repeated on other occasions. We also  extended our condolences to all concerned families, and I want to  emphasize that the safety and security of the affected populations  must be a priority. They are the ones that suffer most from the  conflict. We must keep this in mind when working towards its  resolution. The Austrian Chairmanship is fully aware of its  responsibility and intends to engage actively, in particular by  supporting the Minsk Group Co-Chairs in their mediation efforts. We  will also continue to focus on other elements of the "Minsk Process":  Ambassador Kasprzyk will be my Personal Representative in this  context, and the High Level Planning Group, headed by an Austrian  colonel, Hans Lampalzer, will continue its work. We will do whatever  we can to prevent a further escalation of armed confrontation. This  can only be achieved by working together closely. Accordingly, we  will focus on diplomacy, intensified dialogue and taking further  steps to implement existing proposals."

He stressed that Austria has long played the role of an honest broker  and bridge-builder. "Austria has often been used for important  negotiations, most recently during the Iran nuclear talks and the  Syria talks, and we have a rich experience in intercultural dialogue.  If Azerbaijanis and Armenians want our assistance, we stand ready to  provide it. Our goal is to support the current Minsk Process, not to  open other formats. If we identify concrete areas where we can  reinforce the peace process, we will pursue them, in close  co-ordination with the co-Chairs of the Minsk Group and Ambassador  Kasprzyk, as well as with the parties. Our common goal should be to  strengthen dialogue and ensure that all vital issues are discussed at  the negotiating table via diplomatic means," Minister Kurz says.