Press Releases

South Caucasus Parliamentary Initiative Press Release

Strasbourg, 17 May 2004

The General Secretary of the Council of Europe , Mr Walter Schwimmer said that the work of the South Caucasus Parliamentary Initiative (SCPI) was important not only for the region of the South Caucasus but for the whole of Europe. Mr Schwimmer was speaking during a meeting with the Presidium of SCPI in Strasbourg this morning

The meeting came at the end of the 3rd Session of the Presidium of the South Caucasus Parliamentary Initiative (SCPI) held in Brussels and Strasbourg 14-17 May 2004. Delegations representing the Parliaments of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia were present for the meeting. At the start of its meeting, the Presidium of SCPI also called on the Irish Presidency and General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union, on the European Commission and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Brussels. 

Under the system of the six monthly rotating presidency, Mr Kostantine Gabashvili, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Parliament of Georgia chaired the meeting.

The Presidium of the South Caucasus Parliamentary Initiative reviewed developments in the South Caucasus Region and beyond since the last Plenary Assembly of SCPI held in Scotland in December 2003. It once more reaffirmed the need for further dialogue to help bring about early and peaceful solutions to the problems of the region. The Presidium highlighted the role that the South Caucasus Parliamentary Initiative continues to play in this regard. It welcomed the work done so far by the Georgian Presidency of SCPI. It reaffirmed its commitment to the system of six monthly rotating presidency for SCPI and reiterated its determination to work so that the Parliamentarians of the South Caucasus can play a full role in the peaceful development of the region.

The Presidium noted with satisfaction the results of its meetings with the Irish Presidency and General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union, with the European Commission, and with the General Secretaries of the Council of Europe and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. In its meetings with the institutions of the European Union the Presidium expressed the gratitude of the Parliaments of the South Caucasus for the Communication of the European Commission of 12 May 2004 proposing that the three South Caucasus countries be included as full partners in the European Union “Neighbourhood Policy”. The Presidium looks forward to the final adoption of this communication by the European Council in June.

The Presidium of SCPI welcomed the contacts established with the Bulgarian Presidency of the OSCE. It agreed to convene the next Plenary Assembly of SCPI in Bulgaria in July 2004 and to the holding under the joint auspices of the OSCE Bulgarian Presidency and the Georgian Presidency of SCPI of a seminar with the theme “The South Caucasus in a changing Europe” immediately after the Plenary Assembly meeting.

During its Third Session, the Presidium of SCPI reviewed the work of its Secretariat. It highly evaluated the work of the Secretariat and thanked its members for their effort. It agreed to further strengthen the work of the Secretariat. The Presidium expressed its appreciation to the non governmental organization LINKS for its continued role as facilitator of the process and for its contribution for peaceful dialogue in the South Caucasus.

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