On September 25, 2009 in New York, 16th meeting of the GUAM Council of the Ministers for Foreign Affairs – the United States of America was held within the framework of the general debates on the 64th session of the General Assembly of the United Nations.
The sides assessed their cooperation following the last GUAM – United States Ministerial meeting in Helsinki on December 4, 2008 and underlined the development of the Framework GUAM-USA Program.
They exchanged views on the situation in the region within the agenda item of the 64th session of the General Assembly of the United Nations entitled “Protracted conflicts in the GUAM area and their implications for international peace, security and development.” The sides expressed their conviction that the international community shall intensify efforts on the settlement of the protracted conflicts in the GUAM area on the basis of sovereignty, territorial integrity and inviolability of internationally recognized borders of GUAM Member States, as well as other basic principles of international law.
Both sides marked the fulfillment in June 2009 of the first stage of the Framework GUAM-USA Program project on modernizing national segments of the GUAM Interstate Information Management System (ISIMS) and the progress in the confirmation by the GUAM Member States of the Protocol to the Agreement on Cooperation among the Governments of GUUAM Participating States in the Field of Combat against Terrorism, Organized Crime and Other Dangerous Types of Crimes of the 20 July 2002, which was signed in Helsinki on December 4, 2008.
In this regard, the GUAM side expressed the appreciation to the Government of the United States of America and the United States Department of State Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, who pledged $80,000 to GUAM towards the purchase and installation of encryption equipment for the GUAM Virtual Law Enforcement Center (VLEC) to protect sensitive data critical to the conduct of GUAM joint law-enforcement operations and, thus, to increase GUAM institutional capabilities, foster cooperation among the GUAM Member States and harmonize GUAM’s standards with those of the Euro-Atlantic area.
The GUAM side presented its proposals for the consideration of the U.S. side on the implementation within the Framework GUAM-USA Program of new projects in the areas of combating money laundering and terrorism as well as on a new sub-project in the area of border control regarding vehicles checking to be implemented within the Project on the improvement of the GUAM Member States border control in accordance with international standards for securing the GUAM Transport Corridor.
The sides considered also the situation emerged in connection with some other Framework GUAM-USA Program’s projects, including those on combating drug trafficking and trade in persons.
The GUAM side expressed also appreciation to the Government of the United States of America for rendering technical assistance to the GUAM Secretariat.
The sides agreed to have the next GUAM – United States meeting within the margins of the 17th OSCE Ministerial meeting in Athens on December 4, 2009
