08.12.2016

Amburgo, 08.12.2016: Discorso del Consigliere federale Didier Burkhalter in occasione del Consiglio ministeriale dell’OSCE (special meeting on the Relevance of Arms Control for today’s European Security) – Fa stato la versione orale

Oratore: Didier Burkhalter; Burkhalter Didier

Mr Chairman
Dear friends and colleagues
Ladies and gentlemen

Switzerland is grateful to the German chair for organising this timely event. We have long been advocates of bolstering cooperative security – more security for all rather than just for some at the expense of others. In our view, relaunching conventional arms control is a vital step to achieving this end. More effective arms control means more security for all, including countries like Switzerland that are neutral or non-aligned. We welcome the opportunity to have a political discussion on this today.

Conventional arms control in Europe has not been high on the political agenda in recent years. As with other cornerstones of European security, the arms control regime that was built in the 1990s has gradually eroded. Instruments are either no longer applied by some or at real risk of becoming outdated.

The crisis of cooperative security is also a crisis of arms control. In the context of current tensions, the lack of effective arms control constitutes a major risk in itself. It adds to the security deficit that we are all confronted with. 

Switzerland therefore welcomes the German initiative to relaunch the discussion on conventional arms control. We support it and see it as an opportunity to give new impetus to this important issue. This is why Switzerland joined the like-minded group as a founding member. Based on our distinct position in the European security landscape, we seek to build bridges and narrow the gaps. It is important to prepare now a structured, substantive and inclusive discussion on conventional arms control in Europe.

Conventional arms control can increase trust and security by providing verified transparency, predictability and stability. We must devise the kind of instruments that reflect military realities and respond to today's security challenges. And we must foster the political will to make this a priority. It is for us ministers to make sure that arms control is more than a fair-weather tool.

Engaging in a discussion on conventional arms control should not be made dependent on trust or indeed on any conditionalities. Rather, we should regard such a discussion as a means to rebuild trust; or at least to enhance mutual assurances despite ongoing differences, as we have traditionally done in the CSCE/OSCE process.


Dear colleagues

We need to do more, and we can do more! It is time to overcome the deadlock and move forward. We should make better and more creative use of formal and informal venues within the OSCE and those offered by participating States and other organisations. We should consider fresh ideas and new approaches with an open mind. I especially encourage the Secretary General to use his convening power and to continue organising informal Security Days on these issues.

Most importantly: we need to see the bigger picture. We need a broader and more structured discussion on European security. The informal ministerial meeting in Potsdam and today’s informal panel are useful, and they should become the new standard. We encourage successive OSCE chairmanships to follow this model.

There have been suggestions to engage in a broad, structured dialogue on security threats and challenges. Switzerland welcomes this too. Such a broader discussion and the more focused discussion on conventional arms control should go hand in hand and complement each other.


Parallel discussions will give new impetus to cooperative security in all its aspects. Economic connectivity, strengthening the OSCE’s capacity to act, and conventional arms control could be promising building blocks for a broader discussion on European security. This process would help us create more understanding, more trust, and ultimately more security for all.

Embarking on such a dialogue does not mean a return to business as usual. It means a return to serious efforts to resolve our differences and reconsolidate European security as a common project. We can make this happen, but only by working together. This is the right time, and this is the right place to start.

Thank you.


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Ultima modifica 29.01.2022

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