OSCE Parliamentarians Gather in Vienna
Several members of the OSCE parliament gathered in Vienna to tackle some issues involving Afghanistan. Although the talk also involved several other topics, the issue surrounding Afghanistan was the main focus during the second day of the 9th winter session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly. The winter meeting opened in the Austrian Capital in Vienna and lasted for two days, from February 18 to 19, 2010.
The second day of the winter meeting in Vienna was attended by nearly 50 parliamentarians. This group of parliamentarians participated in the debate regarding the current situation in Afghanistan. The introductions of the debate were done by Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the OSCE PA Vice President and the Head of the Kazakh Delegation; as well as Michael Voisin, the Assembly’s Special Representative for Afghanistan and France’s delegation head.
Since Kazakhstan holds the OSCE chairmanship, OSCE chairman-in-office and Kazakhstan Foreign Minister Kanat Saudabayev delivered a speech addressing several issues, including that of Afghanistan’s. Citing a specific session of the OSCE Permanent Council last January 2010, Kanat Saudabayev stated that his country, Kazakhstan, intends to “pay special attention to Afghanistan.”
Aside from the Winter Meeting in Vienna, an international conference was also held in London, Britain last January in order to discuss several issues regarding Afghanistan. The participants of the January Conference showed their support for Hamid Karzai, the current president of Afghanistan. The group also expressed his support for president Karzai’s plans to promote and encourage the participation of low and mid-level Taliban fighters in their reintegration into the society.
During the Assembly’s session, the three general committees involved; namely the Committee on Economic Affairs, Science, Technology and Environment, the Committee on Political Affairs and Security, as well as the Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions; were obliged to hold their own separate and joint discussions.
