The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe during 2022

Johan Büser (S)

Madam Speaker! The report we are discussing today is largely a description of the work that we in the Swedish OSCE delegation have performed over the past year. I intended to tell you a little about my perspectives and my work.

OSCE is the world's largest regional security organization with 57 participating states in Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and North America. OSCE's role is to work to promote security and stability in the region based on a broadly defined view of security, which encompasses three dimensions: a security policy, an economic and environmental, and one for democracy and human rights.

As long as war, lack of freedom, oppression, persecution, conflicts and corruption are such a large part of everyday life in many of OSCE's member states, OSCE will have an important function by standing up for the European security order in a very challenging time, working for a broad definition of security as well as creating space for dialogue between the member states.

Madam Speaker! Russia's barbaric war and full-scale invasion of Ukraine is entering its second year and still, no end to the war seems to be in sight. The war is the largest geopolitical change since the fall of the Berlin Wall. In addition to enormous human suffering, the war contributes to a significantly more insecure world, also outside our immediate vicinity and beyond the OSCE's geographical area to which both Ukraine and Russia belong.

We see a world with more rearmament, tougher rhetoric between different countries, and more uncertainty and genuine fear regarding the future. We thus face major security policy challenges that we must manage. Within the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, we stand united in the condemnation of the war and the responsibility that Russia and Belarus have for the war. We are careful to frequently point this out. We stand in strong solidarity with our Ukrainian parliamentary colleagues in the OSCE, and we stand together for the Ukrainian people's right to peace and freedom.

It is, however, important to remind ourselves that Russia's war in Ukraine did not begin in 2022. Ever since 2014, Russia has annexed Crimea. We who have followed foreign policy over time saw that the president in Russia, Vladimir Putin, changed his rhetoric as early as 2007-2008 to become significantly more aggressive.

In January this year, I visited Georgia personally, and I then had the opportunity to stay in the areas around South Ossetia, which since 2008 has been controlled by a self-proclaimed republic militarily supported by Russia. The so-called formation of this republic took place as early as 2008 in connection with Russia entering Georgia and waging war. Georgia is another example of states in Russia's direct border area that are subject to Russian influence and whose security is threatened.

It is unacceptable that the European security order as we know it is not respected, and here we must, together with other countries in the OSCE, EU, and UN, constantly and clearly signal this. It is worth noting that the OSCE in broad terms is today in an even worse crisis and in a more complex situation than when the organization was once formed in the shadow of the Cold War.

Madam Speaker! In addition to my mandate in the Swedish OSCE delegation, I am also a rapporteur for democracy and human rights. Within a month, at our summer meeting in Vancouver, Canada, I will present the report that I have been working on throughout the year. It is no secret that authoritarian states, both within the OSCE's geographical area and elsewhere, are strengthening their influence at the expense of national parliaments and democracy.

In my report, I will address several of the challenges and threats that we see today against democracy and the right to decide over one's own body and identity, and thus also the possibility of enjoying full human rights.

Such threats are something we see in far too many countries. The free press, the judiciary, and freedom of expression are threatened. Journalists and dissidents are imprisoned, disappear, and are even executed or found dead. The right to abortion is restricted, and women risk being particularly hard hit in areas where there is conflict. LGBTQ+ persons are harassed, attacked, and in the worst cases, murdered.

Many are the countries that during recent years have had a falling trend in annual indexings and rankings of democratic status. The challenges within and between OSCE's member countries thus remain great.

Securing a common security is the same as defending democracy and human rights every day. Even in many of the countries that we are accustomed to calling fully developed democracies, we see tendencies that mean that democracy is being restricted, something that contributes to increased concern. In well-developed countries like our own, there are problems with both gross violence as well as shootings, crime, and various forms of cultures of silence.

Trust in the common, democratic and political system is decreasing in many places while we allow economic, cultural and social inequalities to increase. These inequalities are therefore a crucial issue to address for every politician in every democratic country.

Madam Speaker! The election observations carried out by OSCE's long-term and short-term observers play a role in many states. During the past year, I have personally observed elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the midterm elections in the USA, and elections in Kazakhstan. Most recently, I was in Turkey and observed the two rounds of voting that took place in connection with the presidential election.

Turkey is a clear example that it is not only what happens on election day that counts, but one also looks at how election campaigns are conducted and what the democratic status looks like. The combined election observations from both short-term and long-term observers indicated that the implementation on election day went well. But there were many other factors that collectively led to the conclusion that the Turkish election nevertheless became an undemocratic one, to put it diplomatically.

This includes, for example, the limited freedom of the press in Turkey, the imprisonment of journalists and opposition members, the harsh election campaign rhetoric with extensive accusations, as well as the total dominance of the sitting president Erdogan in TV channels and other media offerings.

OSSE's election observations with subsequent reports are therefore highly relevant and robust documents describing the overall status of democracy in each country, so also in Turkey.

Madam Speaker! I began my speech by stating that the challenges within OSCE as an organization are enormous. At the same time, OSCE remains a unique forum for discussions and negotiations on regional security that, in the long term, can work to restore the European security order and respect for international law, humanitarian law, and human rights. Therefore, the Swedish membership and the work in this organization is and remains important.

Madam Speaker! I want to conclude by moving for the adoption of the report in its entirety. I also want to thank the Swedish OSCE delegation for the work during the year. That included our skilled secretariat. I would also like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very happy summer.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Björn Söder (SD)

Madam Speaker! The report we are now debating concerns the Swedish delegation's account of the activities during 2022 in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly.

After the pandemic years 2020 and 2021, we perhaps all thought that the year 2022, when the pandemic subsided, would mean that the organization could recover and resume its work again. But when we were in Vienna for the usual winter meeting, we realized on February 24 that new challenges, not only for the organization but for the entire world, were once again a fact.

When we sat there in Vienna at the winter meeting, we were reached by the reports that Russia had launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It became a somewhat surreal situation during the meeting, where Russian representatives claimed in all seriousness that they had only launched a military operation with the aim of denazifying Ukraine. But for all of us others, it became immediately clear that Russia had full-scale invaded its neighboring country and put the entire European security order out of play. The world changed over a day.

Ukraine has bravely pushed back the Russians, and the Western world has shown impressive cohesion and solidarity with Ukraine. The Ukrainians are not just fighting for their country and their people. They are fighting for the entire free world. Therefore, it is our duty to support them.

For given reasons, Russia's war against Ukraine has been in focus throughout the year, but we must not forget what is happening in the shadow of this war. In this shadow, other countries also take advantage, in the hope that the rest of the world will not see what is happening. Within the OSCE area, we still have ongoing conflicts. Azerbaijan is once again taking on Armenia, and the trilateral agreement concluded on November 9, 2020, is frequently violated.

But it is not only Azerbaijan that is taking advantage of the opportunity. In Belarus, where the dictator Lukashenko continues to imprison dissidents who dare to protest against his tyranny, they are also targeting minorities in order to erase their history in the country. In July and August last year, a number of Polish monuments and burial sites were desecrated and vandalized. These attacks coincide with an increase in anti-Polish media campaigns in Belarus. The graves, which belonged to Polish resistance fighters during World War II, are part of the Polish cultural heritage, a heritage that the Belarusian regime does not want to acknowledge. For this reason, I have written a resolution on this for the summer meeting in Vancouver. The resolution has gathered strong support and will be addressed during the meeting, which I welcome.

In Belarus, they have now also started training Cuban soldiers. Last week, an agreement was concluded between Russia and Cuba to send soldiers to Belarus. The purpose is to be able to deploy them in the war against Ukraine. This is happening at the same time as the EU continues to have an agreement with the regime in Cuba, the so-called PDCA agreement, and finances organizations that stand close to the communist regime.

EU member states must make decisions on a review of the agreement and immediately stop the flow of money to a regime that subsequently helps its ally Russia in the war against Ukraine. This, which occurs in the shadow of what is happening on the ground in Ukraine, must not pass without the world's condemnation and action.

During last year's summer and autumn meetings, the delegations from Russia and Belarus were denied participation by the host countries not letting them into the countries where the meetings were held. At the same time, it was decided during the summer meeting in Birmingham that a suspension clause should be introduced in order to be able to suspend delegations from countries that violate almost all of the organization's principles. Unfortunately, we did not reach the end during the autumn meeting in Warsaw, but I hope that we can adopt such a clause at the summer meeting in Vancouver. The Swedish delegation stands united behind the introduction of such a clause, and I welcome that.

Madam Speaker! One of the organization's most important missions is to carry out election observations. Every year, OSCE sends election observers to member countries to observe elections. From the assembly, parliamentarians participate to observe whether the elections are free and fair and whether they live up to the agreed commitments established in the Copenhagen Document of 1990. The election observations are usually carried out in cooperation with ODIHR. During 2022, the assembly observed four elections, and the Swedish delegation participated in all of them. These took place in Hungary, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the USA.

Since election observations belong to the core activities and are perhaps one of the most important missions we as an organization have, it is distressing that the secretariat of the assembly now claims that we do not have money to carry out election observations, most recently in Montenegro. Although both ODIHR and the Council of Europe observed, OSCE did not participate. At the same time as the secretariat is spending more money than ever before, there are no resources for the core activities.

It is several delegations, including the Swedish one, that are now beginning to question what the money is actually being used for. For this reason, we have demanded that a proper operational audit be carried out regarding the parliamentary assembly. Unfortunately, we have met strong opposition to this from certain quarters. Therefore, one can begin to sense that not everything is right within the organization.

It has therefore, for the summer meeting in Vancouver, demanded through a resolution to carry out a proper operational audit. It is important that this happens. How else can we look our citizens in the eye and assert that tax money is going to the right purpose? In this matter, as in many others, the Swedish delegation stands united and firm in its demands for a proper operational audit.

Madam Speaker! Within the Assembly, four party groups operate. These groups have no secretariats of their own and receive no financial contributions from the Assembly, but they meet in connection with the Assembly's regular meetings. One of these groups is the conservative and reformist group, which I took the initiative to form in 2019 at the summer meeting in Luxembourg. I was then elected as vice-chairman together with a British colleague, and a Pole was elected as chairman. Due to the pandemic, the work was somewhat delayed, but at the summer meeting in Birmingham last year, we adopted a declaration for the group. In connection with that, I was also elected as chairman, which is very honoring. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for that trust. My hope is to achieve good cooperation, above all with the EPP group within the Assembly.

Madam Speaker! In my capacity as chair of the Swedish delegation, I would like to say a few words. We have a fantastic delegation with many active members. Even though we occasionally have different political opinions – as that should be in a democracy – we share opinions in many respects regarding the overarching issues and challenges for the organization. It is therefore not particularly difficult to lead our delegation, and I truly appreciate the cooperation we have within the Swedish delegation.

I also want to extend a big thank you to our fantastic civil servants in the delegation: Fredrik, Simona, Jonathan and Geronimo. You are a fantastic support for the delegation.

I envision the Riksdag ramping up its international work in times like these and prioritizing increased administrative and policy support for the delegation. The important meetings and election observations held within the region require a presence on the ground. It is in the personal meetings that political solutions are reached. We must acknowledge and respond to the fact that the security policy situation within the region is more serious than when the organization was once formed.

The Swedish delegation, with politicians and officials, does not only perform the tasks that it is expected to perform. We do more than that and are also a marketer of the country Sweden in international contexts. We also constitute a leading layer among the countries within the assembly that drive and initiate organizational and efficiency issues. For all this work, it is not only we but the entire Riksdag that should be humbly proud.

OSSE is not just any organization. It is the world's largest regional security organization, with 57 participating states in Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and North America. The organization's purpose is to work to promote security and stability in the region based on a broadly defined view of security. Its particular strength lies in its wide circle of participating states, its conflict prevention activities, the broad spectrum of institutions and instruments that allow for rapid and flexible conflict management, as well as its extensive field presence. In this, the parliamentary assembly plays a major role. Therefore, under current circumstances, we should prioritize this work.

Madam Speaker! In conclusion, I would like to move for the proposal in the report to be approved and wish everyone a truly wonderful summer.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Margareta Cederfelt (M)

Madam Speaker! The report we are now debating is titled The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe during 2022. It is always tedious to debate a report with a retrospective perspective, I think. It is about what was done the previous year. What we have done within the organization this year is not included in the report. I will try to stick to 2022, Madam Speaker.

The delegation's chairman Björn Söder and its vice chairman Johan Büser have already accounted for the delegation's work. I will go into it a bit more broadly. It is very pleasing that the Swedish delegation is not only active now during the ongoing war taking place near Sweden but has been so throughout all the years. It is extremely positive.

OSCE with its 57 member states, from Ulaanbaatar in the east to Vancouver in the west, is a fantastic organization. There are also 15 observer states. These are countries that are all located in the vicinity of the OSCE region.

It has been mentioned that the organization OSCE was founded during the Cold War. I also want to add that the parliamentary assembly is somewhat younger. It was established in 1992. But that does not make it any less significant.

Madam Speaker! I consider it extremely important that parliamentarians within the OSCE region have a forum to debate and, as legislators, to contribute to peace and security from the perspective of the European security order.

We can see today how the OSCE region is affected. There are those who say that the European security order has played out its role. I say it is the opposite. It is a country that is pushing for the European security order not to function: Russia.

Do not let Russia get its way in this. We shall continue to fight to ensure that the European security order holds. We shall continue to fight to ensure that the agreements that have been made on how we shall work for peace and security continue to hold.

Madam Speaker! I want to mention this even though it is not about the parliamentary side. It illustrates how Russia opposes OSCE's work. What is happening on the government side also affects the parliamentary side.

Russia has not approved a revised budget for three years. This means that the activities being conducted continue on the old budget that applied three years ago.

The observation force that has been in Ukraine since the illegal annexation of Crimea has been decommissioned. It was decommissioned in connection with the start of the full-scale war.

OSSE's two MR-weeks, which have existed annually for a large number of years and where human rights within the OSCE region have been debated and civil society has been heard, have ceased for three years.

OSSE:s missionaries are the strength. They work for democracy, human rights, the principles of the rule of law and to find methods. It is about helping the countries to find methods for how they should work for increased security.

Russia wanted to abolish it. Most recently, it is Moldova that, instead of receiving a decision on a one-year extension, has only received six months.

Next year's presidency is intended to be Estonia. Do you think Russia has approved it? No. That means there is no incoming presidency. There is no presidency for next year.

The four leading officials within OSCE are the Secretary General, the head of ODIHR, the High Commissioner for National Minorities, and the Special Representative for Media Freedom. Their mandates are to be renewed this year. All four have indicated that they are available to continue. Do you think Russia will have been able to agree to this? No.

Do not let Russia win this. Continue to fight for the OSCE. The OSCE is needed. It is precisely for that reason, Madam Speaker, that Russia is trying to block the activities.

Within the parliamentary assembly, we have fared better. Our decisions are made by majority in the large whole. There are some exceptions.

But we too will be affected by cuts next year. I mention this because Russia has announced that the country will not pay its membership fee. Belarus has not said anything, but Belarus usually follows Russia. This means reallocations of the budget.

Madam Speaker! I am immensely happy and proud, but I can also realize that I could have done even more. I have had the privilege and the joy of being the assembly's president for two years. According to the statutes, my mandate ends this summer when our annual meeting enters its final day. Then a new president shall be elected. According to the statutes, the president cannot continue for more than a maximum of two years.

Madam Speaker! I would like to see a change in the statutes. If it is to be an assembly where the politicians rule, we cannot have a president who is elected for one year at a time and for a maximum of two years. The leading official, the Secretary-General, has a mandate that can be renewed for a maximum of three terms, five years at a time. On the government side, the Secretary-General's mandate can be renewed once, and the term of office is two years.

What I want to say here is that I have worked for and stood for election on the basis that parliamentary influence should increase. But it is very difficult when the mandate period is only one year at a time and at most two years.

I envision that one of the goals I have had can now be fulfilled. It is an operational audit. OSCE's Parliamentary Assembly naturally conducts a financial audit annually. But an operational audit was also needed.

Since the organization was established in 1992, no operational audit has been performed. It is high time that this is done. We have positive experiences of operational audits in other international organizations, such as the governmental side of the OSCE and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in the UN. This also applies here in Sweden, where the Riksdag has the Swedish National Audit Office (Riksrevisionen) at its disposal to audit operations in public bodies and also the results of the decisions that we as members of parliament have made.

I think it is important that the audit takes place. The members think so too. To my delight, I noted that at the autumn meeting in December, a letter signed by 19 delegations was presented demanding an operational audit. Now my hope is that a decision can be made at the summer meeting.

Madam Speaker! Let me also say a few words about what I consider important. It is a parliamentary assembly where now parliamentarians from 55 countries meet. We can take with us what we discuss, the experience and the knowledge we receive from OSCE back to our national parliaments.

That is how we can truly have a real influence on politics. It is about using the knowledge we gain about what the OSCE region looks like. It concerns the problems that exist, the challenges that exist, but also the opportunities that exist. We must know that there are many fantastically functioning countries where we can learn and take knowledge home to improve Sweden.

When it comes to Russia's war against Ukraine, OSCE has been and is active. OSCE's parliamentary assembly has made decisions since 2014 to support Ukraine, and we continue to do so.

I have, as president, appointed a special representative for parliamentary diplomacy. I have appointed a special representative for war crimes, appointed a special representative for Eastern Central Europe and appointed a special representative for political prisoners.

Let me specifically mention Vladimir Kara-Murza here. Vladimir Kara-Murza criticized Russia's war against Ukraine. He was in Russia. Many of us told him: Do not go to Russia. Stay away from there. But Vladimir believes in democracy, and he wants to contribute to democracy in Russia.

Two hours after Vladimir Kara-Murza had given an interview to CNN, he was arrested. He now has a prison sentence of 15 years against him. Here in the Swedish Riksdag, we have collected signatures for his release, and we continue within the OSCE. In the OSCE's parliamentary assembly, we will continue to work for his release.

I also want to mention another issue that is important. It concerns the gender balance. Within OSCE, which is a security organization, approximately 24 percent of the delegates are women.

Almost all delegation chairs are men. The agency consists of approximately 75 percent men. I see nothing wrong with men having space, but I see a need for women to participate. We know that if there is to be long-lasting peace, women's participation in the negotiation work is also needed at all stages, from planning to implementation.

Therefore, I am particularly pleased that the special representative for gender, Dr. Hedy Fry from Canada, together with ODIHR, which is an organization within the OSCE, has developed a document for the revision of gender on a national basis. I believe that this can be a very good instrument, because it is not just about the number of women but also about which positions women obtain.

During my presidency, I have actively worked to ensure that both women and men lead election observations, are appointed as special representatives, and are included in the committees we have within the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly. That is the way I have been able to work.

I think it is important to make a joint submission to all national parliaments that they should also appoint women as members, not just men.

I would also like to say a few things. OSCE works for peace and security in the broad perspective. One instrument that we have – and this shows how different national parliaments support the assembly – is Germany's support for OSCE via the Leinsweiler Seminar, which involves discussing in small, smaller groups how we move forward toward peace. I can say that it has been wonderfully fun and gratifying to see how the Leinsweiler Seminar has been able to contribute to delegations from countries where parliamentarians would never ever dream of talking to each other being able to begin discussing and conversing under organized conditions precisely at a Leinsweiler Seminar.

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe during 2022

Now, after the pandemic, the Leinsweiler seminars have finally started again. This is another example of how parliamentarians can contribute to peace.

Finally, I want to say that as President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, it is clear that my heart beats extra for Sweden and also for the Nordic-Baltic region. I can state that cooperation within the Nordic-Baltic region works excellently. I can also state that the Nordic-Baltic countries, including Sweden, are always active, and this is something that must continue. I also want to say that when it comes to an organization with 57 member states, it is important that the entire region is active.

Under my presidency, I have actively worked to ensure that Central Asia is more included. I see this as extremely important. Central Asia is a part of the OSCE's parliamentary assembly. If we are to work for peace according to the European security order, we must also include parliaments from all 57 countries.

(Applause)

The deliberation was hereby concluded.

(A decision was to be taken on 14 June.)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)