ArmInfo.The 21st Autumn Meeting of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly has started in Yerevan. The session will be held from 18 to 20 November.
Featuring a Parliamentary Conference held under the theme "OSCE in Times of Crisis: Role of the PA in Responding to Internal and External Challenges" and a Mediterranean Forum focusing on the situation in the Middle East, the Autumn Meeting will include high-level speeches by host dignitaries and OSCE officials. Parliamentarians will debate issues including the OSCE's role in an era of conflict, corruption as a fundamental threat to peace and security, and protection of minorities.
One of three statutory meetings that the OSCE PA holds every year, the Autumn Meeting serves as an opportunity for parliamentarians to debate issues related to OSCE principles and values.
Russia, Turkiye and Azerbaijan are not participating in the session. In a conversation with journalists, Chairman of the National Assembly Committee on Foreign Relations Sargis Khandanyan noted that the OSCE PA is meeting in Yerevan for the first time. According to him, in the morning at the meeting of the Standing Commission the activities of the Organization this year were summed up.
According to him, in the second half of the day the work of the meeting itself will begin, at which the Prime Minister of Armenia and the President of the National Assembly will make a welcoming speech, and the first thematic discussion regarding problems and security challenges in the OSCE region will begin.
Regarding the non-participation in the work of the OSCE PA of Russia, Azerbaijan and Turkey, Khandanyan noted that these countries did not provide any explanations regarding their non-participation. According to him, the Russian delegation on November 17 only notified the OSCE PA Chairman of its non-participation in the event.
"As for the non-participation of the Azerbaijani delegation, they raised questions regarding their security in Armenia several times in different formats. The National Assembly of Armenia responded to the Chairman of the OSCE PA and the Assembly about their readiness to ensure the safety of the deputies, but, as you can see, they are not there. This is their decision. As for Turkey, I do not have any information regarding their non-participation in the event," he said.