Statement by the Delegation of Armenia on "Transnational threats - current and future trends in the OSCE area and beyond" delivered at the 2020 Annual Security Review Conference - Permanent Mission of the Republic of Armenia to the OSCE

Statement by the Delegation of Armenia on "Transnational threats - current and future trends in the OSCE area and beyond" delivered at the 2020 Annual Security Review Conference

24 June, 2020

Mr. Moderator,

First, allow me to express our appreciation to the keynote speakers for their thorough remarks. We also thank Ambassador Alena Kupchyna for her intervention and elaboration of the OSCE activities aimed at addressing transnational threats.

There is a consensus that transnational threats - transnational crime, terrorism, arms trafficking, illegal migration, cybercrimes, to name a few, continue to pose a significant threat to national and international security of the participating States. At the same time with the expansion of transnational threats we see a convergence of threats that were once distinct, and these developments have grave implications for peace and stability both in certain regions and in the OSCE area as a whole.

As the COVID19 pandemic showed, the global threats and crises have no borders and no nation around the world is immune against those challenges. The challenge of fighting the pandemic emphasized the urgent need for paying greater attention to effective multilateralism and enhanced cooperation and solidarity.

Armenia continues to attach great importance to the OSCE engagement in the fight against transnational threats. We believe that the variety of commitments, mechanisms and tools elaborated during the last two decades, if implemented and applied properly and in a timely manner, can effectively address most of the threats that the OSCE participating States face on a daily basis. Moreover, the active engagement of the OSCE on the ground, within the domain of its excellence, would be an important contribution to this end.

Mr. Moderator,

Unfortunately, amid the resolve of participating States and the whole organization to fight against various forms of transnational threats, we are still witnessing some worrying trends as well. First of all, it is the inability to form a consensus on some important issues, including the fight against terrorism and radicalization, addressing of the issues of return or relocation of foreign terrorist fighters, border security, just to name a few. We believe that the OSCE with its comprehensive concept of security aimed at promoting co-ordination and co-operation among OSCE participating States and relevant international and regional stakeholders is well placed to address these issues. However, the lack of relevant tasking and inclusive co-operation within the OSCE have led to fragmentation of almost all the efforts.

It goes without saying that as a result of this situation the agenda of the Organization has been overloaded with secondary issues without proper analysis and identification of the real challenges and of our preparedness to address those challenges. Therefore, it is the right time to embark on this exercise - to analyze, assess and reveal deficiencies, perhaps revisit our toolbox in order to focus on long-term efforts aimed at streamlining the work of the OSCE.

Mr. Moderator,

By saying this, I would like to specifically refer to the issue of return of foreign terrorist fighters to their countries of origin or their relocation to the conflict zones. We believe that introduction of violent practices and ideologies of terrorist organizations in our societies should be a matter of concern for all participating States. This is especially true in cases, where state authorities themselves have adopted and promote racial discrimination and hate speech thus creating a fertile ground for radicalization of society. Another major concern, and we believe that this concern should be considered seriously, is that certain states can be tempted to use the terrorist fighters in the conflict zones. And I should point out that this has already been the case in our region.

Mr. Moderator,

In conclusion, I once again would like to underline the necessity of full application of the OSCE tools and mechanisms in the sphere of transnational threats as well as implementation by participating States of their commitments in this area.

Thank you.

MFA RA
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