Jan Pleinger The OSCE Documentation Centre in Prague

Jan Plešinger The OSCE Documentation Centre in Prague: what we do and what we offer The core instrument of OSCE’s engagement after Paris Chapter: the field operations My personal experience: getting to know OSCE as implementing partner, donor, worker in the field and worker in the Secretariat. 1

What is the DCi. P? - The OSCE Documentation Centre in Prague (DCi. P) deals with documentation of OSCE activities, disseminates public information about OSCE and serves as the organization's repository. In cooperation with the OSCE Secretariat, the Centre provides support to annual meetings of the OSCE Economic and Environmental Forum in Prague – the key event of the OSCE’s work in economic and environmental dimension of security. 2

Documentation Centre in Prague - Archives - From 1970 until now - Document orders and answering of questions (docs@osce. org / quest@osce. org) - Mailing list - Internship - Online Library (www. osce. org/docs) - Reference Library & Paper Publications - Economical and Environmental Forum - Researcher-in-Residence Programme - Sending of OSCE Magazines to 3. 500 subscribers

DCi. P and the OSCE field presences • DCi. P, the OSCE Office in Prague is its documentation centre • Materials from the closed mission are at your disposal both physically and electronically • Researcher-in-Residence programe enables access to historical files • There are many lessons to be learned from the closed field presences • Studying the past may help us to avoid future mistakes • DCi. P dissemimates public information 4

Follow us: quest@osce. org www. osce. org 5

OSCE Missions and Field Operations OSCE missions are an important instrument of multilateral diplomacy in the areas of conflict prevention and crisis management. About 2, 500 OSCE associates are currently working in 18 missions (called "missions", "offices" or "project offices") in 16 countries of South Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia. Mandates are agreed on in the OSCE Permanent Council by consensus, i. e. including the vote of the host country. The mandates of individual missions can take various forms, depending on the situation and needs of the host country. They comprise, inter alia, support and advisory services in the promotion of democracy and the rule of law, human rights and the rights of minorities as well as civil society development. 6

Learning the Lessons of the Past Explanatory notes: OSCE presence with some other form of continuity, OSCE highly specific missions with terminated task, terminated OSCE presence in EU countries, OSCE presence terminated abruptly or sooner than expected OSCE Missions of Long Duration in Kosovo, Sandjak and Vojvodina OSCE Mission to Ukraine OSCE Kosovo Verification Mission OSCE Representative to the Joint Committee on the Skrunda Radar Station OSCE Mission to Estonia OSCE Mission to Latvia OSCE Advisory and Monitoring Group in Belarus OSCE Assistance Group to Chechnya OSCE Centre in Tashkent OSCE Representative to the Estonian Expert Commission on Military Pensioners OSCE Mission to Croatia OSCE Centre in Dushanbe OSCE Mission to Georgia OSCE Office in Minsk OSCE Office in Zagreb 7

Is OSCE field presence a stigma for the host country? Different qualities and level of control by respective host countries, different mandates and methods of work – diplomacy, projects, cooperation etc. • • • • • Presence in Albania Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina Mission in Kosovo Mission to Montenegro Mission to Serbia Mission to Skopje Mission to Moldova Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine Observer Mission at the Russian Checkpoints Gukovo and Donetsk Project Co-ordinator in Baku Office in Yerevan Centre in Ashgabat Programme Office in Astana Centre in Bishkek – Programme Office (2017) Office in Tajikistan – Programme Office (2017) Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan 8

Geographical distribution of OSCE Missions and Field Activities • South Eastern Europe Albania Bosnia-Herzegovina Kosovo Montenegro Serbia Skopje (Macedonia) • Eastern Europe Moldova Ukraine • South Caucasus Baku (Azerbaijan) Yerevan (Armenia) • Central Asia Ashgabat (Turkmenistan) Astana (Kazakhstan) Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan) Tajikistan Uzbekistan 9

Cooperation with other institutions - Does the OSCE presence in the field correspond to lack of international cooperation from a host country? 10

The OSCE activities in Ukraine and Moldova Project for Co-ordinator in Ukraine Special Monitoring Mission Donetsk Gukovo Mission to Moldova MH 17 crash site Mission to Ukraine 11

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The OSCE activities in Western Balkans Mission to Croatia Mission to Serbia Office in Zagreb Missions of Long Duration in Kosovo, Sandjak and Vojvodina Mission to Bosnia I Herzegovina Kosovo Verification Mission to Kosovo Mission to Montenegro Mission to Skopje Presence in Albania 13

The OSCE activities in Latvia, Estonia, and Belarus Representative to the Latvian. Russian Military Pensioners' Commission Mission to Estonian Military Pensioners Commission Mission to Latvia Representative to the Joint Committee on the Skrunda Radar Station Advisory and Monitoring Group in Belarus Office in Minsk 14

The OSCE activities in Caucasus Znamenskoe Branch office in Tskhinvali Assistance Group to Chechnya Office in Georgia Office in Yerevan Project Co. Ordinator in Baku 15

The OSCE activities in Central Asia Programme Office in Astana Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan Centre in Bishkek Centre in Ashgabat Office in Tajikistan Centre in Tashkent Centre in Dushanbe 16

• https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=HHW 0_3 t. CPYY

Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe: "Getting to Know the OSCE as Implementing Partner, Donor, Worker in the Field and Worker in the Secretariat". Jan Plešinger

Summit Meeting of OSCE Heads of State or Government Structures And Institutions 2013 Line of Command Provides Support Ministerial Council Annual Meeting of OSCE Foreign Ministers (except of years with Summit) Economic and Environmental Forum Regular annual meeting within the economic and environmental dimension of the OSCE Permanent Council Regular body for political consultation and decision-making (weekly) Forum for Security Co-operation Regular body for arms control And CSBMs (weekly) Chairman-in-Office (Germany - 2016) Troika OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Copenhagen (Serbia, Germany, Austria) Personal Representatives of the Chairman in Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights Warsaw OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Vienna OSCE Field Activities Secretary General Vienna High Commissioner On National Minorities The Hague OSCE Secretariat Vienna Documentation Centre in Prague • South Eastern Europe: Presence in Albania, Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mission to Kosovo, Mission to Montenegro, Mission to Serbia, Mission to Skopje • Eastern Europe: Mission to Moldova, Project Coordinator in Ukraine • South Caucasus: Office in Baku, Office in Yerevan • Central Asia: Center in Ashgabat, Center in Astana, Center in Bishkek, Office in Tajikistan, project Coordinator in Uzbekistan High-Level Planning Group (makes recommendations on developing a plan for the establishment force structure requirements and operation of a multinational OSCE peacekeeping force for the area of conflict dealt with by the OSCE Minsk Conference. OSCE Assistance in Implementation of Bilateral Agreements The OSCE Representative in the Russian-Latvian Joint Commission on Military Pensioners The OSCE Representative to the Estonian Government Commission on Military Pensioners 19

OSCE Assistance Group to Chechnya • The OSCE AG to Chechnya: in Grozny 1995 – 1998 • December 1998: AG's international staff was evacuated to Moscow due to the deteriorating security situation. • December 2000: local staff moved to the new AG office in Znamenskoye in the north of Chechnya. • On 15 June 2001, after almost two and a half years of evacuation, the AG's international staff returned to Chechnya. • The mandate of the Group was extended for one year until 31 December 2002. • The mandate was not further extended and the administrative closure of the Assistance Group was completed on 21 March 2003. 20

Implementing Partner „The OSCE’s co-operation with NGOs/CSOs as implementing partners is regulated by the OSCE Financial/Administrative Instruction 15 (FAI 15). Before engaging an implementing partner, the Project Manager and Chief of Fund Administration will ensure the NGO/CSO is selected in line with FAI 15 and that the co-operation is based on a reasonable level of OSCE involvement to ensure the proper monitoring, controlling and self-evaluation of the project. “ 21

People in Need – the implementing partner People in Need has been operating in Russia since the time of the Chechen wars. It was one of the first international humanitarian organisations to independently reach Chechnya with a delivery of food after the cessation of extensive battles in February of 2000. It was forced to end its activities in the Caucasus in 2005 22

Specialized Projects – OSCE and the IP • Inhabitants of Chechnya – in need of pure water • OSCE Assistance Group – obtained water purifying filters • OSCE had no distribution network • People in Need – had very good distribution network but had no possibility to obtain the water purifying filters • Therefore People in Need becomes OSCE‘s implementing partner 23

Czechia – the donor to OSCE The Czech government identified as its development priorities in Kosovo fight against organized crime and support for minorities • OSCE Mission in Kosovo mediated between the Kosovo Police Education Centre in Vushtrri/Vucitrn and the Czech Government, which offered to donate 45, 000 euros http: //www. osce. org/kosovo/57751 24

Czechia – the donor to OSCE Mission in Kosovo implemented a Czech-sponsored project that supported the education faculty to train primary and secondary school teachers and improve the quality of education, especially in other languages spoken in the community (non-Albanian, non-Serbian). http: //www. osce. org/kosovo/69508 25

Thank you for your attention! 26