Woman becomes OSCE Secretary-General for the first time in history

Helga Schmidt, the representative of Germany, will be appointed Secretary General of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). According to TASS, this was stated by the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Prime Minister of Albania, European and Foreign Minister Adi Rama at the opening of the 27th session of the OSCE Ministerial Council, noting that the OSCE member states were able to reach a consensus on Helga Schmidt.

Thus, for the first time in the history of the OSCE, the post of Secretary General of the organization will be held by a woman. The German female diplomat will replace Thomas Greminger, whose term of office expired last summer. The organization has not had an actual head since. The posts of the heads of the three specialized bodies of the organization were also vacant, as the consent of all 57 OSCE member states is required for their appointment. These positions were vacant in 2020. Since July 18, due to disagreements between member states, it has not been possible to make a new appointment or extend the term of office. The OSCE chairmanship proposed new candidates in September. Initially, there were 11 nominations for four positions, 10 from Europe and one from Kazakhstan. We managed to reach a consensus on four of them.

According to the OSCE Facebook page, high-level officials from the 57 OSCE participating States and 11 Partners for Co-operation took  part in the 27^th  OSCE Ministerial Council. 

Let us remind that The OSCE, established in 1975, is one of the largest regional political organizations in the world dealing with security issues, with 57 member states in Europe, Central Asia and North America.

Who is Helga Schmidt?

On December 8^th, the Bavarian woman diplomat will turn 60 years old. Since the establishment of the structure, she has worked in the EU Office for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and has been its Secretary General.

Schmidt was one of the key figures in the historic 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which she has been working on since 2003, when she was chief of staff to the German Foreign Ministry. It should be reminded that July 14, 2015 was registered in the pages of the history of international diplomacy as a day of extremely important achievement. Iran and the six superpowers – the United States, Russia, China, Great Britain, France and Germany – have reached an agreement on Iran’s controversial nuclear program.

“Helga Schmidt is a very suitable candidate for the post of OSCE Secretary General. “Her leadership experience, negotiation skills, and energy potential to prevent international crises have helped her launch multilateral action, both inside and outside Europe,” said German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas,  adding, that Schmidt is of great benefit to both the OSCE and pan-European cooperation.

It was at Maas’ suggestion that German Chancellor Angela Merkel nominated Schmidt for the post of OSCE Secretary General. Earlier, Schmidt told POLITICO that women are better negotiators.

During her diplomatic career, she spoke about the importance of equal representation of women in politics, business, education, and other areas, and alerted violence against women, gender gaps, and discrimination.

The newly appointed Secretary General of the organization will have a difficult job. Addressing the ministers and partners of the OSCE participating States today, the organization’s President Adi Rama warned that the continuing deepening tensions and mistrust in the region mean that “we are in a crisis, the crisis is getting worse.”

“We have a common vision, which was created in Helsinki, then continued in Paris, then in Istanbul and Astana. That is, towards a democratic, peaceful and united Europe. But today that vision is moving further away from us. Because our principles are not respected. Because our obligations are not fulfilled. As differences between us grow. Because many are chosen unilaterally instead of internationally. Because confrontation is chosen instead of conversation. “And because division is chosen instead of cooperation,” he said.

Full text in Armenian