Pia Kauma chairs the Bureau meeting in Helsinki, 24 January 2025HELSINKI, 24 January 2025 – Meeting in the Finnish capital today, the elected leadership of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly heard remarks from the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Foreign Minister of Finland, Elina Valtonen, and held in-depth discussions on enhancing the role and instruments of the OSCE PA, including by deepening co-operation with OSCE partners.

The Helsinki Bureau meeting was convened and chaired by OSCE PA President Pia Kauma (Finland), who emphasized the value of parliamentarians interacting with the OSCE’s governmental side, particularly at this early stage of the 2025 Finnish Chairpersonship.

President Kauma noted that there is much overlap between the OSCE PA’s work and the priorities of the Chairpersonship, and highlighted, in particular, possible areas of collaboration in regard to supporting Ukraine and promoting an overall agenda of peace for Europe. She also emphasized the importance of utilizing all of the PA’s tools and remaining actively engaged throughout the OSCE area.

The leadership discussed improving election monitoring to better address modern challenges, such as disinformation and artificial intelligence, noting that the procedures need to be developed so that election monitoring activities do not end on election day. “It is very important to continue co-operation even after the elections to ensure that the issues identified in our reports for improvement are advanced in line with our recommendations,” Kauma said.

Elina Valtonen addresses the Bureau meeting in Helsinki, 24 January 2025In her remarks, Minister Valtonen highlighted the programme that she had outlined yesterday in Vienna at the opening of the Finnish Chairpersonship. Upholding OSCE values, she said, is the guiding principle of the Chairpersonship, stressing that this is essential to ensure that the 1975 Helsinki Final Act continues to promote European security for future generations. 

“No task is more important than finding a just and lasting peace for Ukraine,” Valtonen said. “What the people need is not just support but encouragement and vision for the future, which is Ukraine as part of Europe.”

OSCE PA Bureau members posed a number of questions to the Chair-in-Office on the OSCE’s potential roles in the context of peace negotiations in Ukraine. Members also raised issues including the importance of updating the OSCE’s toolbox to reflect current political and security realities, as well as focusing on combating misinformation and disinformation.

Valtonen stressed that there can’t be any discussions about Ukraine without Ukraine, which she emphasized is an integral part of Europe. For peace negotiations to be effective, she said, it is important that Ukraine gets all the support it needs. In this regard, the OSCE must champion its commonly agreed values and press for accountability for violations of international commitments, while at the same time preparing for a future in which all OSCE participating States are fully included.

Ville Kaunisto addresses the Bureau meeting in Helsinki, 24 January 2025The Head of Delegation of Finland to the OSCE PA, Ville Kaunisto, highlighted the continuing potential of the Helsinki Final Act to build a peaceful future through dialogue and mutual understanding, emphasizing the particular relevance of this principle for the Baltic region.

“I would like to invite the OSCE PA to pay more attention to the Baltic Sea area,” Kaunisto said. Urging the leadership to incorporate Baltic Sea security in the PA’s overall programme, Kaunisto underlined that this is important not only for Finland but for all OSCE countries to understand new risks in the region.

Discussions in today’s meeting also focused on governance and decision-making processes for the OSCE PA, as well as the costs and benefits of fostering engagement within the OSCE and with partnerships. Ideas for strengthening OSCE PA tools and modifying methodologies were also debated, especially in relation to controversial topics.

Bureau members also discussed upcoming activities, including next month’s Winter Meeting in Vienna, and scheduled visits to Türkiye, Ukraine, and the Middle East, as well as follow-up on the recent election in Georgia.

Photos of today's meeting are available on Flickr.