[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 113 (Wednesday, August 4, 1999)]
[House]
[Pages H7236-H7237]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        THE ORGANIZATION FOR SECURITY AND COOPERATION IN EUROPE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Hastings) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. HASTINGS of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to share with my 
colleagues the results of the highly productive and informative 
experience that the U.S. delegation had at the Annual Session of the 
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Parliamentary 
Assembly--or the OSCE PA. As many of you know, this year seventeen 
members of Congress formed the U.S. delegation, and as the U.S. 
delegation does every year, we attended the Parliamentary Assembly's 
Annual Session in a member country of the OSCE. This year's Annual 
Session was in St. Petersburg, Russia and met from July 6-10. I am 
pleased to inform my colleagues that our week in St. Petersburg was a 
successful one, both for the entire Assembly and especially for the 
U.S. delegation.
  The purpose of the Annual Session is to bring parliamentarians 
together in order to discuss and assess developments in conflict 
resolution within Europe, as well as to form proactive means of 
approaching a wide range of security issues, including arms control, 
preventive diplomacy, human rights and economic security. These 
thoughts, recommendations, and goals are then compiled into a 
declaration, which is ultimately adopted by the entire Parliamentary 
Assembly.
  I draw inspiration from this document for many reasons. On its 
surface, this document is a comprehensive and vital educational tool. 
It brings to our attention gross violations of human rights, such as 
the international trafficking of women and children; it offers us 
effective methods to continuing the peace process in Yugoslavia and 
Kosovo; and it describes initiatives of securing peace and democracy 
throughout Europe. In effect, the St. Petersburg Declaration serves as 
an important reference on a wide scope of events and issues, which 
better aids us all in understanding the current global order.
  On a secondary level however, the St. Petersburg Declaration, and the 
OSCE PA declarations that preceded it, demonstrate the value of inter-
cooperation and dialogue between countries. The OSCE parliamentarians 
form a body of representatives from fifty-five governments throughout 
Europe, Central Asia, and North America; and it has adopted an all-
embracing approach in its membership and approach to security, conflict 
resolution, and economic cooperation in the OSCE region. Consequently 
the Parliamentarians bring to the OSCE PA a vast range of knowledge and 
experiences that complements and supplements one another. In a time of 
fungible borders and instantaneous communication between continents and 
cultures, it behooves us all to understand these varying perspectives 
and opinions.
  More important, however, is the OSCE's ability to use this collection 
of experience and thought for the greater good of security in Europe 
and justice throughout the world. The

[[Page H7237]]

sum of the parliamentarians' collective expertises and experiences is 
so much greater than the individual parts. Indeed, when brought 
together and shared in such a forum, there is an exchange of ideas that 
better enables us to understand the root of global concerns, and 
ultimately how the international community can best take action to 
remove these problems. In effect, we are able to combine the best ideas 
and developments of our various countries in order to work toward peace 
and cooperation throughout the world.
  Such innovation and progress would simply not be possible if we acted 
as isolated agents, and I firmly believe that the effectiveness of the 
OSCE PA lies in its ability to draw on both our shared and unique 
experiences. The St. Petersburg Declaration reflects the value of this 
interrelationship, and I am grateful for the opportunity to both learn 
from and contribute toward it.
  While I am certainly proud to be a member of a distinguished body 
like the OSCE PA, it gave me particular pleasure to attend the Assembly 
as part of the U.S. delegation. This group of seventeen members enjoyed 
many successes in St. Petersburg. The St. Petersburg Declaration 
contains several U.S. authored initiatives, including Representative 
Chris Smith's resolution on ``The Trafficking of Women and Children,'' 
Senator George Voinovich's ``Regional Infrastructure in South-Eastern 
Europe,'' section and Representative Louise Slaughter's section on 
``The Assassination of Galina Starovoitova.'' Moreover, I, along with 
several other members of the U.S. delegation, contributed significantly 
to the chapter on ``Common Security and Democracy in the Twenty-First 
Century.''
  The accomplishments of the U.S. delegation were certainly appreciated 
by the entire Parliamentary Assembly, and we were each encouraged to 
share the principles and goals of the OSCE with our colleagues in 
Congress. I would therefore like to take this opportunity to also 
encourage other members of Congress to familiarize themselves with the 
OSCE, and ultimately to take steps to continue our participation with 
this organization.
  We are faced with a time of significant regional conflict. Eastern 
Europe is still in the recovery process of Slobodan Milosevic's brutal 
ethnic cleansing of Kosovar Albanians, and it will take many months, if 
not years, before the hundreds of thousands of refugees are able to 
return to their homes and resume their familiar lifestyles. Indeed, it 
will take considerable time for all of the residents of this region to 
recover from the rampage and injustices that were committed in this 
area.
  These conflicts may sometimes seem isolated and removed from our own 
challenges and goals as a nation, but we have, in fact, entered a time 
where our setbacks and successes should be shared. We have a 
responsibility to use our successes as a means of alleviating other 
countries' setbacks. As I have said, the OSCE presents us with a viable 
and effective forum to share our resources, and the United States needs 
to remain engaged and build upon its place within their collective 
dialogue, rapporteur missions, peacekeeping operations, and peaceful 
dispute resolutions.
  Last month I introduced a bipartisan resolution expressing this 
sentiment. H. Con. Res. 161 extends the support of Congress to the OSCE 
and the goals of the St. Petersburg Declaration, as well as urges the 
United States to continue its role with this important international 
organization. Please show your support of the OSCE by cosponsoring this 
resolution.
  As key players in the international community, the United States has 
historically and continues to take an active part in international 
organizations and institutions, such as the United Nations, the North 
Atlantic Treaty Organization, and the OSCE. I am confident that our 
commitment to these institutions will remain strong. Ultimately, it is 
my hope and belief that together we can secure peace, democracy, and 
justice throughout the world.

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