GUAM countries and US issue joint statement

On December 5, 2014, in Basel, the 21st meeting of the GUAM Council of Ministers for Foreign Affairs with the representatives of the Government of the United States of America took place in the margins of OSCE Ministerial meeting. the four GUAM members are Georgia,Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova. Observers have noted an increased interest by the participating states in the work of the organisation following the start of the crisis in Ukraine

Reaffirming all the previous GUAM-USA Statements, the Sides assessed their cooperation following the last GUAM-USA Ministerial Meeting, held in New York on September 26, 2014, and exchanged views on issues of mutual interest. The Sides expressed interest in the dialogue that has taken place since the GUAM establishment.

The Sides underscored the need for progress toward the peaceful resolution of the conflicts in the GUAM region. The threat or use of force currently affecting the Member States of GUAM remains a serious concern. The Sides reaffirmed their commitment to the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the GUAM Member States.

The Sides agreed to continue dialogue on these conflicts in the appropriate forums.

The Sides expressed deep concern over the aggressive actions directed against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and recalled their obligations to respect universally recognized norms and principles of international law, including those enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations and their commitments under the fundamental documents of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.

Source:commonspace.eu

 

Related articles

Popular

Editor's choice
Interview
Thursday Interview: Murad Muradov

Thursday Interview: Murad Muradov

Today, commonspace.eu starts a new regular weekly series. THURSDAY INTERVIEW, conducted by Lauri Nikulainen, will host  persons who are thinkers, opinion shapers, and implementors in their countries and spheres. We start the series with an interview with Murad Muradov, a leading person in Azerbaijan's think tank community. He is also the first co-chair of the Action Committee for a new Armenian-Azerbaijani Dialogue. Last September he made history by being the first Azerbaijani civil society activist to visit Armenia after the 44 day war, and the start of the peace process. Speaking about this visit Murad Muradov said: "My experience was largely positive. My negative expectations luckily didn’t play out. The discussions were respectful, the panel format bringing together experts from Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Turkey was particularly valuable during the NATO Rose-Roth Seminar in Yerevan, and media coverage, while varied in tone, remained largely constructive. Some media outlets though attempted to represent me as more of a government mouthpiece than an independent expert, which was totally misleading.  Overall, I see these initiatives as important steps in rebuilding trust and normalising professional engagement. The fact that soon a larger Azerbaijani civil society visits to Armenia followed, reinforces the sense that this process is moving in the right direction." (click the image to read the interview in full)