UK closing statement: OSCE Ministerial Council 2024

Thank you Chair.  On behalf of the UK, I want to begin by thanking you and your committed team. Thank you for your warm hospitality here in Malta. And thank you for your outstanding leadership. You have been an incredible team.

As my Foreign Secretary said earlier in the week, we lament that Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine over 1,000 days ago means the OSCE is not currently the forum for collaboration and discussion of our shared security to which we all submitted.  To Russia we say simply this - your actions, your violations of the UN Charter and the principles of the Helsinki Final Act are indefensible.  As the overwhelming majority have expressed here in Malta, the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity matter; this Organisation matters; and we will stand together to defend both.

We have also been clear that the UK will stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes. We will continue to give political, economic, military and moral support to ensure Ukraine prevails, to secure the lasting peace that the Ukrainian people deserve and the security that our continent demands, in the face of such unfettered, unjustifiable aggression. And we will work to hold Russia to account for its actions.

Yesterday, we heard Mr Lavrov say it was the West that had scrapped the security structures that kept us safe. A comment of little value from the representative of a country which undermined Moldova’s territorial integrity in 1990, invaded Georgia in 2008, illegally annexed Crimea in 2014 and launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. A comment of little surprise, given the OSCE’s crucial role in holding Russia to account, including through the Moscow Mechanism. A comment that this Ministerial Council shows has fooled no one – including our Partners for Cooperation, who have today emphasised the indivisibility of security with regions beyond Europe.

Chair, what we have shown is that we need the OSCE. In a turbulent region, the OSCE’s democracy, rule of law and fundamental rights institutions are globally renowned, holding nations to account. OSCE field missions are deployed across the Balkans and Central Asia, working with host governments to deliver long-term change. ODIHR has observed elections and across the Secretariat and the autonomous institutions our OSCE colleagues have worked to deliver their mandates.

What we have also shown is the OSCE remains relevant both now and in the future.  It is our duty to preserve it.  So, the UK is delighted that we have agreed candidates for the Secretary General and heads of the autonomous institutions. And we offer a warm welcome to all of them from us. We thank them for stepping up to ensure the continued efficacy of the OSCE. You can all count on the United Kingdom’s full support. And to the officers in charge who stepped up when the Organisation needed them, we offer the deepest appreciation and gratitude to you and your hard working staff.

Mr Chair, as we all know, the OSCE still needs an agreed and appropriate budget. We are deeply disappointed that we have been unable to agree to one today. We also need Chairs in Office for 2026 and 2027. We welcome the offer made by Cyprus.

Mr Chair, as we look to 2025, we offer Finland our full support.  We will continue to stand with Ukraine. We will continue to stand up for the OSCE. And we will continue to stand for the foundations and values of our collective European security. That is our choice and it is why we are here.