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Structure of the OSCE

Summits: At these meetings, the Heads of State and Government of the OSCE participating States take stock of the situation in the OSCE area and work out new basic lines of action. The last Summit was held in 1999 in Istanbul.

Ministerial Council (MC): It consists of the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the participating States. It is the central decision-making and governing body, which considers urgent matters and takes the appropriate decisions. Its meetings are held at least once a year, towards the end of the term of office of each Chairman.

Permanent Council (PC): It is responsible for the day-to-day operational activities of the OSCE. It is chaired by the representative of the Chairman-in-Office. Its members – Permanent Representatives of the participating States – meet once each week (on Thursdays) at the Hofburg Conference Centre in Vienna. The PC holds consultations and takes decisions on all matters relevant to the OSCE. It may be convened on special occasions.

Forum for Security Co-operation (FSC): It is composed of the Permanent Representatives of the delegations of the OSCE participating States and meets in Vienna every week at the OSCE Headquarters to discuss and consult on specific measures for strengthening security and stability in the OSCE area. Its functions also include the holding of negotiations on arms control, disarmament and confidence-building measures, reduction of the danger of the occurrence of conflicts, regular consultations on security matters, annual meetings on the assessment of implementation of the confidence- and security-building measures, and seminars on military doctrines.

Parliamentary Assembly (PA): It was created in 1991. The OSCE PA Secretariat is located in Copenhagen. At its session held in July 2007 at Astana, the representative of Portugal João Soares, was elected the President of the OSCE PA for a term of one year.

Chairman-in-Office (CiO): The CiO provides general direction of the operational activities and is the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the State which holds the Chairmanship of the OSCE. The CiO in 2009 is the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Greece, Dora Bakoyannis. The CiO is appointed for a term of one year and is assisted by:

  • The “Troika”, consisting of the previous, the present and the succeeding CiOs (in 2009, they are Finland, Greece and Kazakhstan);
  • Special groups, which may be convened to provide additional assistance, especially in the area of conflict prevention and crisis management;
  • Personal representatives appointed by the CiO with a specific mandate.


Secretary General: He/she is appointed by the MC for a term of three years and acts as the representative of the CiO and as the Organization’s Chief Administrative Officer. His duties include supervision of the OSCE’s structures and operations. Since 2005, the post has been held by Ambassador Marc Perrin de Brichambaut (France).

Secretariat: It functions under the direction of the Secretary General and consists of the following:

  • Office of the Secretary General;
  • Conflict Prevention Centre;
  • Strategic Police Matters Unit;
  • Action against Terrorism Unit;
  • Office of the Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings;
  • Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities;
  • Department of Management and Finance;
  • Department of Human Resources;
  • Prague Office (OSCE archives and document distribution).


Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR): responsible for co-operation in the matter of ensuring human rights, development of democracy and assertion of the rule of law. Its Headquarters are in Warsaw. Since 2008, it has been headed by Ambassador Janez Lenarcic (Slovenia).

OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media: assists the participating States in the development of free and independent media on the basis of the principles of the OSCE. Since 10 March 2004, this post has been held by Miklos Haraszti (Hungary).

High Commissioner on National Minorities: brings to light cases of inter-ethnic tensions and assists in their speedy resolution. He is based in the Hague. Ambassador Knut Vollebaeck (Norway) has held the post since 4 July 2007.

Field missions of the OSCE: serve the purposes of conflict prevention and crisis management and provide assistance in development in specific directions. Their mandate includes maintenance of contacts and development of dialogues with the parties concerned in the field. At present, there are 19 OSCE field missions:

  • In the Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo, Montenegro and Serbia);
  • In the Eastern European countries (Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine);
  • In the Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia*, Office of the Personal Representative of the Chairman-in-Office on the Conflict Dealt with by the OSCE Minsk Conference);
  • In Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan).


* N.B. The mandate of the Mission to Georgia expired on 31 October 2008.

High-Level Planning Group: responsible for developing a plan for the establishment of an OSCE peacekeeping force for Nagorno-Karabakh.

There is also an OSCE Representative to the Russian-Latvian Joint Commission on Military Pensioners.

OSCE-related bodies. The following bodies operate under the aegis of the OSCE:

  • Court of Conciliation and Arbitration (settlement of disputes by means of conciliation, Geneva);
  • Joint Consultative Group (promotes compliance with the provisions of the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe);
  • Open Skies Consultative Commission (implementing body of the Open Skies Treaty of 1992).