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Ukrainian settlement to be priority of Austria’s OSCE chairmanship — foreign minister

According to Kurz, Vienna is ready to promote dialogue with all parties and continue the OSCE’s cooperation with the efforts taken in the "Normandy format"

Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic

Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz

© AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic

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VIENNA, July 14. /TASS/. The settlement in Ukraine will be a priority of Austria’s OSCE chairmanship, Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz said on Thursday outlining the priorities of the country’s chairmanship in this organization in 2017.

"The resolution of the conflict in Ukraine on the basis on the Minsk agreement will be a priority of our chairmanship," he said.

According to Kurz, Vienna is ready to promote dialogue with all parties and continue the OSCE’s cooperation with the efforts taken in the "Normandy format." He pointed to the role played by the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) and the Contact Group in resolving the crisis.

"We need to develop dialogue to approach the solution to the conflict," the minister said.

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FACTBOX: Collective Security Treaty Organization

The Collective Security Treaty came into force on April 20, 1994 to herald the emergence what would eventually become the Collective Security Treaty Organization. The six member-countries are Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan

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