Suchergebnisse

The present article was part of the conference Belgium and its foreign policy of November 2006, organized by the University of Gent and Catholic University Leuven. It presents an evaluation of the Belgian 2006 Presidency of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). A main objective has been to play an active role regarding the institutional reforms. Achieved were: increased efficacy of the organization, and a renewed confidence in communication between eastern- and western-member states (dividing line, Vienna); strengthening of the economic and ecological dimension, with as focus transport (achieved: increased cooperation between member states, special attention for land-locked countries, and transport-related security issues such ash illegal migration, human traffic, drug traffic, and terrorism); fight against international crime and promotion of the rule of law as central topic of the chairmanship (achieved: increased cooperation between member states); a constructive contribution to solving frozen conflicts (achieved: theoretical improvements). Concerning the human dimension of the OSCE: activities concerning access to legal advice, democratization, mediums freedom, trafficking of human beings, tolerance (the Danish cartoon crisis), and increased access of NGOs to OCSE meetings. References. O. van Zijl