OSCE IMplementation

The Secretary-General mentioned this morning that progress has been made. That may be true, but it is disappointing that implementation continues to lag. The Secretary-General mentioned that there is growing awareness, but that there is also a huge lack of funding for initiatives relating to the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000). Our support for implementation must go beyond rhetoric. We need to walk the talk.

First of all, the 63 existing national action plans, 28 are from the OSCE region alone, and several more are in the making. We continue to work with our participating States to improve their plans or develop new ones. Secondly, we have established within the OSCE a network of 60 gender focal points, covering our 17 field operations, three institutions and a secretariat to support the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) by participating States and to develop our own internal compliance, which is important to us.

I would like to stress that, in everything we do, we strive to strengthen our cooperation and engagement with other international organizations and civil- society organizations. For example, we have developed close cooperation with UN- Women in Ukraine on the implementation of the new Ukrainian national action plan.

I have just mentioned some of our achievements, but we still have a long way to go. We are aware that we need to look inward as well. We need to create a better gender balance in our own OSCE structures, in particular in the politico-military dimension.

Before I conclude, I would like to commend the Spanish initiative to set up the women and peace and security national focal point network. We look forward to engaging with this forum.

You may rest assured, Mr. President, as may all others present, that the OSCE remains committed to the full implementation of resolution 1325 (2000), with a view to countering the normalization of violence, promoting peace and security, eradicating gender-based violence and improving the participation of women. We rely on the support of the Security Council as we strive to work in close cooperation with all stakeholders.