Monaco takes part in 24th OSCE Ministerial Council

Mr Gilles Tonelli, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, and Mr Thomas Greminger, OSCE Secretary General

 ©DR

Gilles Tonelli, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, took part in the 24^th Ministerial Council of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which was held in Vienna on 7 and 8 December 2017. He was accompanied by H.E. Ms Isabelle Berro-Amadei, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Principality of Monaco to the OSCE, and Mr Lorenzo Ravano, First Counsellor at Monaco’s Embassy in Berlin.

In his speech, the Minister reaffirmed Monaco’s commitment to the fundamental rules of international law, chief among which are those relating to the protection of human rights, the rule of law, democracy, and respect for the principles of justice and peace. Mr Tonelli welcomed the numerous actions taken by the OSCE with respect to the Ukrainian crisis, as well as the significant efforts made to calm tensions in the region. He also reaffirmed the Principality’s financial support for the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine.

The Minister also noted that the Principality would continue its own efforts to do what it could to help combat terrorism. These efforts include a three-year extension of the programme which Monaco supports alongside the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime aimed at helping the countries of the Sahel region to improve their criminal justice systems in the fight against terrorism and violent extremism, as well as support for the Council of Europe’s Octopus Cybercrime programme.

Finally, Mr Tonelli stated that the Principality of Monaco remained firmly committed to working with its Mediterranean partners, including through the extension into 2018–2019 of an agreement between the Prince’s Government and the OSCE on funding for a project to “combat human trafficking along migration routes”. This extension was signed in the margins of the Ministerial Council during a bilateral meeting with Ambassador Thomas Greminger, the new OSCE Secretary General, in the presence of Ms Madina Jarbussynova, OSCE Special Representative and Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings.