Foreign Ministry: Kyiv to present its OSCE chairmanship program in early 2013

Ukraine is thoroughly preparing for its chairmanship at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in 2013, the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine has said.

Ukraine's preparations for the chairmanship of the OSCE in 2013 are an important part of the Foreign Ministry's current activities and they are being carried out systematically, according to the spokesman for the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine, Oleksandr Dykusarov.

"The active phase of the completion of a detailed program of the future chairmanship at the OSCE will begin in September this year, as soon as the current Irish chairmanship of the OSCE presents draft documents that are to be approved at a meeting of the OSCE Ministerial Council in December 2012 and which will be taken into account by Ukraine," Dykusarov said, while commenting on the fact that Kyiv has not drafted and submitted a program of its chairmanship of the OSCE yet.

He added that the Ukrainian side has met with the heads of the main institutes of the OSCE as part of its preparations for the chairmanship. He also mentioned that OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier has scheduled a visit to Ukraine for September 10-11, 2012.

Dykusarov also said that Ukraine's chairmanship program would be introduced in early 2013, as this is usually done in the OSCE.

"It [the program] will include initiatives of the Irish chairmanship and proposals of the central authorities that are represented in the membership of the organizational committee for the preparations and implementation of events connected with Ukraine's chairmanship of the OSCE in 2013," he said.

According to Dykusarov, Ukraine is also holding consultations regarding future strategic development of the OSCE with Serbia and Switzerland that will chair the organization in 2014-2015.

"In September 2012 we are planning to start discussions of the issues related to the future chairmanship with a wide range of OSCE member states," Dykusarov added.

As reported, Ukraine will chair the OSCE in 2013.