States News Service
May 18, 2017 Thursday


OSCE SECRETARY GENERAL, ON FORTHCOMING CLOSURE OF OFFICE IN YEREVAN,
COMMENDS WORK OF ITS STAFF

VIENNA, Austria

The following information was released by the Organization for
Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE):

OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier said today that the
Organization had to start the process of closure of the Office in
Yerevan, since no consensus could be reached on the future mandate of
the Office.

The closure of the OSCE Office in Yerevan follows months of
negotiations and extensive efforts by the 2016 German OSCE
Chairmanship and the 2017 Austrian OSCE Chairmanship to resolve the
deadlock on the extension of the Office's mandate.

The OSCE opened its field presence in Armenia in 2000. Zannier said
that the Office in Yerevan, with its dedicated staff, had made a
significant contribution in assisting and advising the Armenian
authorities on the implementation of OSCE commitments. "Co-operation
with Armenia has always been very fruitful," he said.

The OSCE's activities in the country included, among others,
assistance with police reforms and support for reviewing and
streamlining the national regulatory frameworks affecting business
activity and the daily lives of citizens. In 2006, the Office in
Yerevan established a Programme Implementation Presence in the Syunik
region to contribute to sustainable development.

Secretary General Zannier emphasized that the OSCE will seek to
continue its engagement with Armenia in line with existing OSCE
commitments across all three security dimensions the
politico-military, the economic and environmental and the human
dimension.

The Office in Yerevan will discontinue its operations on 31 August 2017.