CLINTON'S OSCE VISIT KEY SIGNAL FOR POST-SOVIET DEMOCRATS (AFP, 5 December 2011)
Updated 2011-12-05
VILNIUS, December 5, 2011 (AFP) - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's presence at a meeting of top OSCE ministers will be a key sign of Washington's commitment to democracy in the ex-Soviet bloc, host Lithuania said Monday.
"This is the best location to send a strong signal supporting democratic leaders and organisations," Lithuanian Foreign Minister Audronius Azubalis told AFP ahead of Tuesday and Wednesday's meeting of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
Besides attending the OSCE session, Clinton is also to meet activists from authoritarian Belarus, whose border lies just 30 kilometres (19 miles) from the Lithuanian capital Vilnius.
But her visit will be a message to other ex-Soviet republics, including Russia, Azubalis underlined.
"We want to see not regress but the seeds of democratisation," he added.
Clinton's presence will likewise counter critics who claim the administration of President Barack Obama has lost focus on countries behind the former Iron Curtain, Azubalis noted.
"Her visit also signals that the US has not retreated from this region, as many say. This is a chance to say that the US is here and will stay," Azubalis said.
"Her visit will support and encourage all democratic forces in the region," he added.
Over 40 other top diplomats are scheduled to attend the meeting, including Clinton's Russian, German and EU opposite numbers.
Former Soviet-ruled Lithuania is coming to the end of its year-long term as president of the 56-nation OSCE, whose membership stretches from the United States to Russia. Ireland takes the helm in 2012.
The OSCE, which aims to monitor and encourage democracy and human rights in its region, was spun out of an earlier body created to ease Cold War tensions.
"This is the best location to send a strong signal supporting democratic leaders and organisations," Lithuanian Foreign Minister Audronius Azubalis told AFP ahead of Tuesday and Wednesday's meeting of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
Besides attending the OSCE session, Clinton is also to meet activists from authoritarian Belarus, whose border lies just 30 kilometres (19 miles) from the Lithuanian capital Vilnius.
But her visit will be a message to other ex-Soviet republics, including Russia, Azubalis underlined.
"We want to see not regress but the seeds of democratisation," he added.
Clinton's presence will likewise counter critics who claim the administration of President Barack Obama has lost focus on countries behind the former Iron Curtain, Azubalis noted.
"Her visit also signals that the US has not retreated from this region, as many say. This is a chance to say that the US is here and will stay," Azubalis said.
"Her visit will support and encourage all democratic forces in the region," he added.
Over 40 other top diplomats are scheduled to attend the meeting, including Clinton's Russian, German and EU opposite numbers.
Former Soviet-ruled Lithuania is coming to the end of its year-long term as president of the 56-nation OSCE, whose membership stretches from the United States to Russia. Ireland takes the helm in 2012.
The OSCE, which aims to monitor and encourage democracy and human rights in its region, was spun out of an earlier body created to ease Cold War tensions.
