New Ideas for European Security
A new report by the OSCE Network of Think Tanks suggests concrete steps how to return to dialogue.
This report argues that interim rules of the road in the security, economic, and social fields, based on current realities and currently shared interests, are needed to help reduce the renewed East-West confrontation: A modus vivendi that allows both sides to retain their principled positions on the European order, and how they believe it is threatened; but that also allows for the mitigation and containment of existing conflicts. Such a modus vivendi can pave the way for serious discussions that can lead to a return to norms and principles as a guiding force for the European order. The ideas of this report are based on 15 national narratives produced by institutions affiliated with the OSCE Network of Think Tanks.
These narratives identify numerous shared interests on which to base an interim modus vivendi. They generally recognize the need for a program of urgent action aimed at resuming dialogue and seeking cooperation, structuring multiple lines of dialogue as a starting point for broader intergovernmental cooperation, and agreeing on some urgent measures without political conditions and linkages. This project was encouraged by the 2016 German OSCE Chairmanship. The report has been drafted by a working group, consisting of Wolfgang Zellner (principal drafter), Irina Chernykh, Alain Délétroz, Frank Evers, Barbara Kunz, Christian Nünlist (CSS/ETH), Philip Remler, Oleksiy Semeniy, and Andrei Zagorski. The group presented their report at a side event during the 23rd OSCE Ministerial Council in Hamburg on 8 December 2016.