2016 AUTUMN MEETING, SKOPJE, REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE PA) represents the parliamentary dimension of the OSCE. It is comprised of 323 members of the parliaments of 57 member countries of the OSCE, encompassing the geographical area from Vancouver to Vladivostok. It is the only parliamentary organization in the OSCE structure, and fulfills the role of a vital link between the governmental part of the OSCE and the representatives directly elected by the people.
The Parliamentary Assembly of OSCE was established in 1991 in Madrid under the name Parliamentary Assembly of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE). At the meeting held in April 1991, 34 leaders of Parliaments of the Signatory States of the Helsinki Final Act adopted the basic acts of this Parliamentary Assembly in the so-called Madrid Declaration.
A Delegation of the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia, comprised of three parliamentarians, participated in the activities of the OSCE PA for the first time at the 2nd Annual Session of this Parliamentary Assembly held in 1993 in Helsinki. At this Session, as well as at the sessions held in Vienna (1994) and Ottawa (1995), the Delegation participated with an observer status.
After becoming a member country in the OSCE and in the OSCE PA in 1995, starting with the Session held in Stockholm in 1996, the Delegation of the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia takes part in the sessions of this forum and in the framing of policies and decisions as a participating country.
The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly holds regular annual sessions, winter meetings and autumn meetings.
The first Annual Session of the OSCE PA, in line with the Madrid Declaration, was held in Budapest in 1992. The subsequent sessions were held in: Helsinki, Vienna, Ottawa, Stockholm, Warsaw, Copenhagen, St. Petersburg, Bucharest, Paris, Berlin, Rotterdam, Edinburgh, Washington D. C., Brussels, Kyiv, Astana, Vilnius, Oslo, Belgrade, Monaco, Istanbul, Baku and Helsinki. The current questions relating to security and cooperation in Europe were discussed at each of these annual sessions, and declarations were adopted which afterwards were submitted to the competent authorities and institutions of the OSCE.
The last 25th Annual Session of the OSCE PA was held in July 2016 in Tbilisi, Georgia.
At the Autumn Meeting of the OSCE PA, held between 15 and 18 September 2015 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, the candidacy of the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia to host the following Autumn Meeting of the OSCE PA was accepted.
From 29 September to 2 October, OSCE parliamentarians will meet in Skopje for the Assembly’s 15th Autumn Meeting. Consisting of a Mediterranean Forum, Parliamentary Conference, and meeting of the Standing Committee, the Autumn Meeting will provide an opportunity for parliamentarians from across the OSCE region to debate important topics related to OSCE commitments and values. Session Two of the Parliamentary Conference, scheduled for 1 October, is expected to feature a roundtable event with heads of OSCE field operations in South East Europe. The theme of this year’s Parliamentary Conference is “Strengthening Confidence-Building Measures and Good Governance in the OSCE Region.”
All sessions of the Autumn Meeting will take place at the Hotel Holiday Inn in Skopje. The Autumn Meeting is open to credentialed members of the media.