Debate on Russia's exclusion from organization exhausted, OSCE Chief states
Bujar Osmani, Head of OSCE (Photo: Getty Images)
The debates on the possible exclusion of Russia from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) have been exhausted at this moment, states the OSCE Chairperson, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of North Macedonia, Bujar Osmani.
"I think these debates are exhausted, at least up to this moment," emphasized Osmani, commenting on the possible exclusion of Russia from the organization.
He explains that there are two arguments hindering such a decision. One is legal, requiring the support of 56 out of 57 members for Russia's exclusion, and the other is political because many organization members consider it a forum for dialogue among countries with differing perspectives.
Despite the OSCE making decisions through consensus, there exists the so-called "consensus minus 1" formula, used in cases of serious violations of OSCE principles, which has been applied only once, in the case of Yugoslavia in 1991.
"But we believe that this principle will not work now as there are different opinions within the OSCE," stated Osmani.
Excluding Russia, even considering this formula, is impossible because Belarus is also a member of the organization.
Background
Russia directly influences crucial decisions within the OSCE. For instance, together with Belarus, it prevented Estonia from chairing the organization.
The aggressor country continues to be part of the OSCE despite waging an annexation war against Ukraine for almost two years.
Recently, the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sergey Lavrov, was allowed to attend an OSCE meeting, resulting in a scandal as some participants boycotted the speech of the Russian official.
For more details on this, you can refer to the article by RBC-Ukraine.
