Speeches expected from OSCE officials and high-level representatives of the United Kingdom

COPENHAGEN, 2 June 2022 – Members of the media are invited to attend the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s 29th Annual Session, taking place in Birmingham, United Kingdom, on 2-6 July. (Register here.) Hundreds of parliamentarians from across the OSCE area (spanning North America, Europe and Central Asia) will debate topics related to political affairs and security, economic and environmental issues, science and technology, and democracy, human rights and humanitarian questions.

Following several days of committee work, the Annual Session will culminate in the adoption on 6 July of the Birmingham Declaration, containing recommendations to national governments, parliaments and the international community. The largest event on the Assembly’s calendar, the 2022 Annual Session comes at a time of heightened challenges facing the OSCE region due to the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine. Debates are expected to focus on the war and its related political, security and humanitarian impacts, but will also cover other important issues, including:

• economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic
• migration and displacement
• humanitarian situation in Afghanistan
• human trafficking in a globalized economy
• cybersecurity and cybercrime
• nuclear security and the prohibition of nuclear weapons
• pollution and climate change
• independence of civil society
• freedom of the media and combating disinformation

The 2022 meeting is the first in-person Annual Session since 2019, with the 2020 session cancelled and the 2021 session held remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is the first time in almost two decades that the UK Parliament has hosted the event.

“While we celebrate that we are finally able to meet for an Annual Session after two years of the pandemic, we must recognize the fact that we are meeting in one of the most difficult times to ever face the OSCE,” OSCE PA President Margareta Cederfelt (Sweden) said today. “Just as we had begun to emerge from COVID-19, the Russian invasion of Ukraine shattered a fragile peace in Europe and has caused unimaginable suffering for countless innocent Ukrainian civilians. We owe it to the people of Ukraine and to all our member countries to make this peace a reality with respect for Ukraine’s territorial integrity.”

Speaker of the House of Commons Lindsay Hoyle said: “The UK Parliament is honoured to be hosting the Annual Session of the OSCE’s Parliamentary Assembly. We value our partnerships with other parliamentarians, and we want to create a welcoming forum for important discussions to take place. Through dialogue and co-operation we will make Europe and our world safer, and we will strengthen all our democracies.”

John McFall, Speaker of the House of Lords, said: “Now more than ever, parliamentary colleagues must work together in partnership to tackle the numerous national and global security issues that affect us all. I’m pleased that the UK Parliament is hosting this important meeting for the first time in two decades and I look forward to welcoming colleagues to Birmingham this year.”

John Whittingdale MP, Head of the 13-member UK Delegation to the OSCE PA, commented: “In the 30th year since the creation of the OSCE PA, we remember its founding principles: the renunciation of the use of force, respect for sovereign and territorial integrity and protection of human rights and freedoms. Those principles seem especially important today as the OSCE continues to work to create a safe and secure environment for all.”

Taking place at the International Convention Centre, the Annual Session will be addressed by high-level dignitaries from the United Kingdom and the OSCE. In addition to plenary sessions and meetings of the general committees, the Annual Session will also include a meeting of the Assembly’s Standing Committee, numerous bilateral meetings and side events, and elections of Assembly officers.

For additional information, including programmes, committee reports and draft resolutions, please visit the OSCE PA Annual Session web page.

NB:

• Journalists who wish to attend the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Annual Session 2022 will need to complete the accreditation form.
• The accreditation form must be completed and submitted by Friday 17 June at 18:00.
• The Annual Session will be livestreamed on YouTube and Facebook – no registration necessary.
• More information for journalists is available in the media guide.

The OSCE PA brings together 323 delegates from 56 parliaments, plus a guest of honour from the Holy See. Established by the 1990 Paris Summit with the aim of advancing the aim of comprehensive security, the Assembly provides a forum for parliamentary diplomacy, monitors elections, and strengthens international co-operation to uphold commitments on political, security, economic, environmental and human rights issues.