The daily work in promoting Norwegian interests in the OSCE are primarily handled by the Permanent Delegation to the OSCE in Vienna and the section dealing with OSCE affairs in the Department for Security Policy in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Oslo. There are a total nine persons working in the delegation. This includes four diplomats, one military adviser (colonel), one intern, two secretaries and one driver.
For more detailed studies of the organisation and its scope of work we would suggest that you have a look at the homepage of the OSCE from where you can click your way to comprehensive information about the organisation, its institutions, its field activities and much more. The OSCE has presently field-activities in 18 different countries or territories. The activity is concentrated in countries in transition in the Balkans, Eastern-Europe and in Central-Asia.
Norway held the Charmanship in 1999; former Ambassador Eide and the former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan at the OSCE Permanent Council in 1999.
Norwegian secondments:
There are approximately 10 Norwegian women and men seconded to various OSCE field-operations. This includes border monitors, police instructors, human rights- and legal officers, democratisation officers, education officers, field officers and senior management positions. In addition, Norwegians are usually seconded on short-, mid-, and long term contracts to election observation missions in the OSCE-area. OSCE Election Observation Missions are conducted by the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), which is one of the OSCE institutions.
Knut Vollebaek, OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities. Photo: OSCE/Hasan SopaODIHR’s headquarter is located in Warsaw, Poland. At present there is Norwegian personell seconded to Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Macedonia, Serbia, as Head of Mission to Tadjikistan as well as personell to the OSCE Secretariat in Vienna and to the OSCE ODIHR. Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway, Mr. Knut Vollebæk, currently holds the position as the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities.
OSCE mission members are usually seconded for an initial period of one year, with the possibility to extend their contract further. If you want more information on procedures and applications for Norwegian secondments to the OSCE, please click here.