On September 18-19, 2014, the GUAM Secretariat in Kyiv hosted the 31th Meeting of the GUAM Council of National Coordinators (CNC).
This event involved the following officials: Mr. E. Agayev, Director of the External Planning and Strategic Research Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan; Mr. D. Djalagania, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and GUAM National Coordinator for Georgia; Mr. V. Chiveri, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration and GUAM National Coordinator for the Republic of Moldova, who chaired the meeting; Mr. D. Lubkivskiy, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine; and Mr. V. Chechelashvili, Secretary General of GUAM.
The CNC expressed its deep concern due to the situation occurring as a result of aggressive actions aimed against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, reaffirmed its commitment to the universally-recognized norms and principles of international law, the aims and purposes established in the Charter of the United Nations Organization and in the GUAM Charter, and the provisions of the basic documents of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
The CNC condemned the so-called “elections in the Gossovet” (state assembly) in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (ARC) and in the City of Sevastopol, Ukraine, held on September 14, 2014. The CNC stressed that these “elections” were illegal and that they have not changed the status of the ARC and the City of Sevastopol in terms of the international recognized borders of Ukraine.
The CNC welcomed the holding of appropriate consultations with a view to elaborating the mechanism for strengthening cooperation, peace and stability in the GUAM region.
The CNC took into account information from the Presidency about the work being carried out to promote the UN Draft Resolution “Protracted conflicts in the GUAM area and their implications for international peace, security and development”.
The CNC welcomed the adoption of Resolutions 68/262 “The territorial integrity of Ukraine” and 68/274 “Status of internally displaced persons and refugees from Abkhazia, Georgia, and the Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia, Georgia” during the 68th Session of the GA UN.
The CNC discussed a range of issues related to interparliamentary cooperation of GUAM and upheld the intention to host meetings of the Bureau and committees of the GUAM PA at the GUAM Secretariat on October 27, 2014 with purpose of appropriately preparing for the GUAM PA Session in November 2014 in Chisinau. The CNC supported the GUAM PA’s intention to form a group of observers for the extraordinary parliamentary elections, to be held on October 26, 2014 in Ukraine, and the regular parliamentary elections, to be held on November 30, 2014 in the Republic of Moldova.
The CNC discussed a range of issues related to GUAM sectoral cooperation, in particular, cooperation in the field of combatting terrorism, human trafficking and illegal migration, and also in the field of economy and trade, transport, and energy.
The CNC also discussed issues regarding GUAM’s cooperation with other states and international organisations, such as the USA, Japan, UNODC, the OSCE, and the EU.
The venue and date of the next CNC meeting shall be agreed upon through diplomatic channels.
