OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Foreign Minister of Poland, Zbigniew Rau, and OSCE Secretary General, Helga Maria Schmid, have announced that the OSCE has initiated steps to close the office of the Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine.
This decision follows the lack of consensus by the OSCE Permanent Council to extend the Project Co-ordinator’s mandate, due to the position of the russian federation.
"Regrettably, despite the overwhelming support from participating States for the continuation of the important work that the Project Co-ordinator has carried out for 23 years, no consensus on its mandate extension was reached due to the position of the Russian Federation," Chairman-in-Office Rau said.
The Polish Chairmanship will make every effort to preserve the invaluable experience and expertise the Project Co-ordinator gained in the country and ensure that the OSCE remains present, and engaged with Ukraine. Today, when the country is facing unprecedented challenges and hardships due to the ongoing war, our support is more important than ever," he stressed.