Law of international organizations. Regional and subregional international organizations of general competence United Nations specialized agencies

Article 52 of the UN Charter provides for the establishment and operation of regional arrangements or bodies to resolve issues relating to international peace and security. At the same time, such bodies should be suitable for regional action, and their activities should be compatible with the purposes and principles of the UN. States that have entered into relevant agreements and established such bodies should make every effort to peacefully resolve local disputes through such regional bodies before referring these disputes to the Security Council. In turn, the UN Security Council should encourage the development of this institution both on the initiative of the states concerned and on its own initiative. Where necessary, the Council may use regional arrangements or bodies for enforcement action under its own authority. Finally, in accordance with Article 54 of the Charter, he must always be fully informed of the actions being taken or planned for the maintenance of peace and security at the regional level.

Thus, the UN Charter assigns a significant role to regional organizations in achieving the main statutory goal of the Organization. More than half a century of practice has confirmed the viability of this institution. Moreover, regional international structures have begun to play an increasing role in coordinating cooperation between states in other areas: economic, social, humanitarian, etc. In fact, several existing international organizations of general competence can be considered as a kind of "regional UN", which solve actual problems of international relations in the respective region. The most authoritative of them are ASEAN, Arab League, OAS, OAU, OSCE, etc.

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was established in 1967 by five founding states: Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines. Later, ASEAN included Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and other countries. The main documents regulating the cooperation of states within the framework of ASEAN are the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation in Southeast Asia signed in 1976 on the island of Bali and the ASEAN Declaration of Consent, as well as the Singapore Declaration of 1992. During the Cold War, ASEAN was the object of a struggle for the influence of the two world social systems.

The goals of ASEAN are: 1) organizing cooperation between member states in the economic, social and other fields; 2) to promote the establishment of peace and stability in Southeast Asia. The main form of cooperation between member states is regular meetings and consultations of authorized officials: heads of state, foreign ministers, heads of various departments, etc. In fact, ASEAN coordinates a very wide range of issues, which include both the development of a common approach to political problems, and and the development of mutually beneficial relations in certain sectors of the economy, environmental protection, the fight against crime, counteracting the spread of drugs, etc.


The highest body of the organization is the Meeting of Heads of State and Government, where the most important issues of regional partnership are discussed and major decisions are made. Each participating State is represented at such summits. Meetings are held once every three years in turn in each country in alphabetical order.

The ASEAN Regional Forum on Security Issues (ARF) has also been operating since 1994. Its work is attended by officials not only of the ASEAN states, but also of the organization's partner countries, the number of which is steadily growing. In fact, two sets of issues are resolved at the forum at once: on the one hand, coordination of cooperation between ASEAN states in the field of strengthening security, on the other hand, coordination of positions between ASEAN and third countries, contacts with the world's largest states.

The permanent body of ASEAN is the Standing Committee, which performs the functions of an executive and coordinating body that ensures the implementation of decisions taken within the framework of ASEAN and signed documents. The Committee includes employees of the foreign policy departments of the ASEAN member states: their ambassadors in the country of the chairman of the organization, as well as the heads of the ASEAN national secretariats that are part of the structure of the Foreign Ministries. The work of the Committee is headed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the state in which the last Meeting of Heads of State and Government took place. Periodically (once a year) within the framework of ASAEN, meetings of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs are held, which for the duration of the meeting assume the functions of the Standing Committee.

The current organizational work is carried out, in addition, by the ASEAN Secretariat headed by the Secretary General.

ASEAN actively cooperates with states and organizations that are not members of it, but are interested in maintaining peace and stability in the region. Representatives of the respective countries regularly participate in meetings and consultations held within the framework of the organization. Recently, this cooperation has begun to take on institutional forms: in many states, appropriate committees and other bodies are being created, which, as a rule, include diplomats from ASEAN countries. In particular, the USA, China, Japan, Russia, Korea, Canada, the European Union, etc. have the status of ASEAN permanent partners. Cooperation between ASEAN and the Republic of Kazakhstan is developing rather intensively.

Arab League (LAS) was established in 1945 in Cairo, when the Conference of Arab States adopted the main founding document - the Pact of the League. In accordance with it, the goals of the organization are:

Ensuring closer relations between Member States;

Coordination of political actions of member states;

Organization of cooperation in economic, financial, trade, cultural and other fields;

Ensuring the independence and sovereignty of the Member States;

Consideration of all issues affecting the Arab states and their interests.

In fact, the main activity of the Arab League for a very long time was to ensure the sovereignty of the Arab states, which is connected with the tense international situation in the region. All independent Arab countries, of which there are currently more than twenty, can be members of the Arab League. At the same time, the Palestinian Liberation Organization and one non-Arab state (Somalia) are members of the Arab League. In 1979, Egypt's membership in the Arab League was suspended, which was associated with the signing of a peace treaty between Egypt and Israel.

The main organs of the Arab League are the Council, the Conference of Heads of State and Government, and the General Secretariat. The Council of the League is a sessional plenary body composed of representatives of each member state. The main organizational and legal form of the Council's activity is regular sessions, which are convened twice a year.

According to the 1945 Pact, the decisions of the Council are binding only on those States that voted in favor of their adoption. The only exceptions are those decisions that concern the internal life of the League (budget, personnel, etc.) - they are made by a majority of votes and are binding on all members of the League. If any decision is taken by the member states of the Arab League unanimously, it is binding on all.

The Conference of Heads of State and Government has been convened since 1964 to discuss at the highest level the most pressing problems for the countries of the Arab world. The decisions taken at the Conference are an important source regulating the activities of the Arab League and its bodies. The secretariat provides for the current and organizational issues of the League's activities. The headquarters of the Secretariat is located in Cairo.

In addition to those indicated, the structure of the Arab League includes various bodies coordinating cooperation between member states in certain areas of international relations: the Joint Defense Council, the Economic Council, the Legal Committee, the Oil Committee and other specialized bodies.

In most cases, the Arab League seeks to develop a common position of all Arab states on key international issues. Within the framework of the League, a mechanism for the peaceful settlement of disputes between its members, as well as a mechanism for preventing and repelling aggression, has been created and is functioning. As practice shows, the Arab League plays a significant role in modern international relations. The League has permanent observer status with the United Nations.

Organization of American States (OAS) was established in 1948, when its Charter was adopted (entered into force on December 13, 1951 and changed several times). Its creation was a logical continuation of the process of deepening cooperation between the American countries: the Inter-American Conference in Bogotá, which adopted the Charter, was the ninth in a row. In addition to the Charter, the main founding documents of the OAS traditionally include the 1947 Inter-American Mutual Assistance Treaty and the 1948 Inter-American Treaty for the Peaceful Settlement of Disputes. The OAS includes more than 30 states of North America, Latin America and the Caribbean.

The objectives of the OAS are:

Maintaining peace and security in the Western Hemisphere;

Settlement of disputes between Member States;

Organization of joint actions against aggression;

Development of cooperation in the political, economic, social, scientific, technical and cultural fields.

The main organs of the OAS are the General Assembly, the Consultative Meeting of Foreign Ministers, the Defense Advisory Committee, the Permanent Council, the Inter-American Council for Integrated Development, the Inter-American Judicial Committee, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the General Secretariat. In addition, within the framework of the OAS, there are several specialized organizations (for example, the Pan American Health Organization), which are regional analogues of the UN specialized agencies.

The General Assembly is the highest plenary body of the OAS, meeting in its regular sessions once a year. The competence of the General Assembly includes the discussion of the most important issues of inter-American cooperation. The Consultative Meeting of Foreign Ministers considers situations and problems of an urgent nature and meets as they arise. In fact, this is the body of the organization's rapid response to crisis situations. As a rule, the member states of the OAS are represented in the General Assembly at the level of their foreign ministers.

The Permanent Council is a permanent body (it meets twice a month) that provides general management of the activities of the OAS between sessions of the General Assembly. As for the Inter-American Council for Integrated Development, it coordinates all socio-economic programs operating within the framework of the OAS. Both bodies are formed from representatives of all Member States on a parity basis. The seat of the Permanent Council is Washington.

The highest official of the OAS is the Secretary General, who is elected by the Assembly for a non-renewable term of five years. Moreover: according to the regulations, the successor of the Secretary General cannot be a citizen of his state.

Within the framework of the OAS, it was not always possible to satisfactorily resolve issues of maintaining peace and security (for example, due to ideological differences, Cuba was once excluded from the OAS). At the same time, member states cooperate closely on issues such as the unification of legal systems, the protection of individual rights, the expansion of cultural ties, etc.

Organization of African Unity (OAU) was established on May 25, 1963. On this day, which is celebrated as Africa Liberation Day, the Charter of the OAU, the main founding document of the organization, was signed in Addis Ababa.

The objectives of the OAU are:

Strengthening the unity and solidarity of African states;

Coordination and strengthening of cooperation between African states in such areas as politics and diplomacy, defense and security, economy, transport, communications, education, culture, etc.;

Protecting the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of African states;

The elimination of all types of colonialism in Africa;

Encouragement of international cooperation in accordance with the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The main organs of the OAU are the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, the Council of Ministers, the Commission for Mediation, Conciliation and Arbitration, the Commission of African Jurists, the Liberation Committee, a number of specialized commissions, and the General Secretariat.

The Assembly of Heads of State and Government is the supreme plenary body of the OAU, in which all member states are represented at the highest level. The Assembly meets at its regular meetings once a year, and at the request of 2/3 of its members - at extraordinary sessions. This body is authorized to consider the most important issues of international cooperation between African states and take legally binding decisions based on the results of the discussion. The Assembly closely cooperates with the Council of Ministers, to which it instructs to organize the implementation of the adopted decisions. In the Council, African states are represented, as a rule, by their ministers of foreign affairs, however, depending on the nature of the issues to be decided, other ministers may participate in the work of the Council. The Council of Ministers is the executive body of the OAU and has a sessional procedure: it meets in its sessions twice a year.

The day-to-day work of the OAU is organized by a Secretariat headquartered in Addis Ababa. The remaining organs of the OAU coordinate the cooperation of African countries in various fields, from the peaceful settlement of disputes to cultural exchanges.

The OAU, along with the OSCE, is the largest of all existing regional organizations: it includes more than 50 states. As practice shows, at all major international forums, including the UN General Assembly, African states are trying to act as a single bloc in order to better protect Africa's special interests. Corresponding efforts are regularly reflected in various international documents (for example, in the Millennium Declaration, where the interests of Africa are singled out as an independent structural section). According to the Charter of the OAU, this organization adheres to a policy of non-alignment with any military-political blocs. After the final elimination of the colonial system, the activities of the OAU are focused on the implementation of a just world economic order and the solution of social problems. Within the framework of the OAU, there is a mechanism for peacekeeping operations; The organization has permanent observer status with the UN.

An important milestone in cooperation in Africa was the signing in 1991 of the Treaty on the Formation of the African Economic Community, which should result in the creation of a single market for goods, services and labor on the continent, as well as the introduction of a single currency and deepening economic integration.

Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) formed from among the participating states of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe and the states that share the goals and principles formulated in the 1975 CSCE Final Act. This name has been used by the organization since January 1, 1995. As for the founding documents of the OSCE, it is quite difficult to determine their exact list, since many of the acts that are important for this structure do not have the form of an international treaty. The most famous of them, apart from the aforementioned Final Act, are the 1990 Charter of Paris for a New Europe, the 1992 Declaration on the Challenge of Change (Helsinki), the decisions of the Budapest Summit in 1994, the documents of the Lisbon (1996) and Istanbul (1999) ) meetings and some others. In accordance with these acts, the CSCE was transformed into the OSCE with a new structure of bodies, principles and directions of activity, etc. Since 1993, the OSCE has been granted observer status at the UN.

The very renaming of the CSCE into the OSCE took place at the end of 1994 (at a meeting in Budapest), although already in the Helsinki Documents it was decided to consider the CSCE as a regional agreement in the sense that it is stated in the UN Charter, Chapter 8 of which practically does not distinguish between regional agreements and regional bodies. The member states themselves have repeatedly emphasized in various documents that the renaming of the CSCE does not change its status and the obligations of its participants.

The main objectives of the OSCE are:

Creation of conditions for ensuring a lasting peace;

Support for the détente of international tension;

Cooperation in the field of security, disarmament and conflict prevention;

Contribution to respect for human rights;

Deepening cooperation in economic, cultural and other fields.

According to the Lisbon Declaration on a Common and Comprehensive Security Model for Europe in the 21st Century, adopted on December 3, 1996, the OSCE is called upon to play a key role in strengthening security and stability in all their dimensions.

The main bodies of the OSCE are the Conference of Heads of State and Government, the Council of Ministers, the Governing Council, the Permanent Council, the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, the Center for Conflict Prevention, the High Commissioner on National Minorities, the Parliamentary Assembly and the Secretariat.

The Meeting of Heads of State and Government is a body that resembles an international conference in its form of work. Decisions made at such meetings (they have been held at various intervals since 1990) determine the areas of cooperation between European states and set guidelines for European integration.

The Council of Ministers meets in its meetings, as a rule, once a year. In this body, each state is represented at the level of the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Its decisions are more normative, which is why the Council is considered the central governing body of the OSCE. One of the members of the Council during the year is the chairman of the OSCE. As a rule, he works in close contact with the previous and next chairman (the so-called "leading troika"). At present, the question of the forthcoming chairmanship in the OSCE of the Republic of Kazakhstan in 2007 is being considered.

Control over the implementation of the decisions of the Council of Ministers and the preparation of the agenda for its meetings is carried out by the Governing Council. He also coordinates the activities of all bodies that are part of the OSCE structure. The meetings of the Governing Body are held in Prague at least twice a year.

On a permanent basis, the Permanent Council operates within the framework of the OSCE, the seat of which is Vienna. The Council, which deals with current OSCE policy matters, is composed of representatives from each participating State. One of the functions of the Permanent Council is to promptly respond in case of emergencies. Also a permanent body is the OSCE Secretariat, headed by the Secretary General. The latter is elected for a term of three years by the Council of Ministers on the recommendation of the Governing Body.

To strengthen regional security, the OSCE operates the Conflict Prevention Center, which is a mechanism for multilateral consultations of member states, and also coordinates cooperation between states in certain aspects of military activity. This structure operates in close contact with the Council of Ministers. The location of the Center is Vienna.

Mention should also be made of such a specific structure as the OSCE Forum for Security Co-operation, which has the function of preventing possible conflict situations with the participation of OSCE member states and strengthening confidence-building measures in the region.

53 states are currently members of the OSCE, including the Republic of Kazakhstan.

test questions

1. List the constituent documents of the CIS.

2. What is the legal nature of the Commonwealth of Independent States?

3. Name the main bodies of the CIS and describe their competence.

4. What are the main problems of the functioning of the CIS at the present stage?

5. Describe the structure of the European Union.

6. What should be understood as EU law?

7.What views on the nature of the EU exist in the doctrine of international law?

8.Tell us about the status of international regional organizations of general competence (OAU, Arab League, OAS, ASEAN, OSCE).

Literature

Egorov V., Zagorsky A. Cooperation of the CIS states in the military-political field. - M., 1998.

Zaitseva OG International intergovernmental organizations. - M., 1983.

Isingarin N. Problems of Integration in the CIS. - Almaty, 1998.

Kalachan K. Economic Integration of the Member States of the Commonwealth of Independent States: International Legal Aspects. - M., 2003.

Kapustin A. Ya. European Union: integration and law. - M., 2000.

Moiseev EG The Decade of the Commonwealth: International Legal Aspects of the CIS Activities. - M., 2001.

Nazarbaev N. A. Eurasian Union: ideas, practice, prospects. - M., 1997.

Tolstukhin A.E. On the supranational character of the European Union // Moscow Journal of International Law. 1997. No. 4.

Topornin BN European communities: law and institutions. - M., 1992.

Shibaeva E. A. Law of international organizations. - M., 1986.

European Law: Textbook for High Schools / Ed. L. M. Entina. - M., 2000.

International Law: A Textbook for High Schools / Ed. ed. G. V. Ignatenko, O. I. Tiunov. - M., 2006.

International public law: textbook. / Ed. K. A. Bekyasheva. - M., 2004.

Fundamentals of European Union Law / Ed. S. Yu. Kashkina. - M., 1997.

Law of the European Union: Sat. documents / Comp. P. N. Biryukov. - Voronezh, 2001.

European Union Law: Textbook / Ed. S. Yu. Kashkina. - M., 2002.

Collection of documents on international law. Volume 1. / Under the general. ed. K. K. Tokaeva. - Almaty, 1998.

Bekker P. The Legal Position of Intergovernmental organizations. - Dordrecht, 1994.

Source: Electronic catalog of the branch department in the direction of "Jurisprudence"
(Libraries of the Faculty of Law) of the Scientific Library. M. Gorky St. Petersburg State University


Makarenko, A. B.
OSCE - Pan-European International
organization of general competence /A. B. Makarenko.
//Jurisprudence. -1997. - No. 1. - S. 156 - 165
  • The article is in the publication “News of higher educational institutions. »
    • Material(s):
    • The OSCE is a pan-European international organization of general competence.
      Makarenko, A. B.

      OSCE - Pan-European International Organization of General Competence

      A. B. Makarenko*

      Adopted at the Summit of States Parties to the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe in Budapest (5-6 December 1994) a package of documents (Political Declaration "Towards a Genuine Partnership in a New Era" and "Budapest Decisions") 1 contains a number of major decisions aimed at reorganizing the CSCE in accordance with the dictates of the times, significantly increasing its effectiveness and efficiency. The direction of development of the CSCE along the path of its transformation into a full-fledged regional organization is clearly indicated. The first part of the "Budapest Decisions" - "Strengthening the CSCE" - is actually a detailed outline of the Charter of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

      An event of great significance was the renaming of the CSCE into the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which is a recognition of the fact that today the CSCE actually has all the features of a regional (uniting Europe with the integrated inclusion of the USA and Canada) international organization of a common competencies.

      A feature of the OSCE is that it does not have a single document - a constituent act. The process of creating the organization took a long period of time and is still ongoing, and the set of decisions adopted at the summits of the participating states acts as a constituent act.

      The history of the OSCE began on August 1, 1975, when the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE), held in Helsinki, ended with the signing by the leaders of 33 European states, the United States and Canada of the final document of the meeting - the Final Act. The participation of the United States and Canada in the European regional meeting was due to the presence of military contingents and military bases of these countries in Europe, as well as the fact that the participation of the United States, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, is of great importance for ensuring security in Europe.

      The Final Act is rightfully considered one of the most important international documents of our time, since its content includes the following: firstly, the establishment of general principles of international relations between the participating States, which at the same time represent the principles of international law; secondly, a set of agreements to ensure European security and confidence-building; thirdly, agreements on cooperation in the field of economy, science and technology and the environment, humanitarian and other fields; fourthly, a statement of determination to continue the multilateral process initiated by the Meeting and an agreement on activities to be carried out by the participating States after the Meeting; fifthly, the creation of the basis for a system of collective security and cooperation.

      The final act has a complex multifaceted structure. In addition to establishing the legal principles of relations between states, it fixes the goals and intentions of its participants, collectively developed and agreed recommendations, and also contains specific legal norms.

      By its legal nature, the Final Act is unique, and this gave rise to numerous discussions q: the legal force of this document, and subsequently other agreements within the CSCE. As noted by V. K. Sobakin, this uniqueness makes it impossible to bring the Meeting and the Final Act under the traditional classifications of international meetings and international legal documents. 2

      There is no doubt that the Final Document of the Helsinki Conference is not an international treaty. 3 Such a conclusion can be drawn from the text of the Act itself, which states that it "is not subject to registration under Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations." In accordance with this article, all treaties and international agreements concluded by members of the UN must, as soon as possible, be registered with the Secretariat and published by it. The refusal to register deprived the participants of the Meeting of the right to refer to the Final Act as a treaty in any of the UN bodies, from which it can be concluded that the states participating in the CSCE decided not to give this agreement a contractual form.

      This fact was a prerequisite for differences of opinion regarding the obligatory nature of the Act for the participating countries. The American International Law Association, when publishing the text of the Final Act, provided it with an explanation stating that the Final Act had no binding force. 4 This approach received a negative legal assessment from the international legal community. Both the Final Act itself and the outcome documents of all subsequent summit meetings within the framework of the CSCE are permeated with statements of the participating countries about their “intention to put into practice”, “determination to give full effect” to the provisions of the Final Act of the Conference. The section of the Act dealing with the principle of good faith fulfillment of obligations under international law states that the participants "will ... take due account of and fulfill(my cursive. - A.M.) provisions of the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe”. 5 More decisive is the wording of the Madrid Outcome Document: confidence- and security-building measures will be “mandatory and will be provided with adequate forms of verification corresponding to their content”. 6 In the Final Document of the Vienna Meeting, the participants expressed their determination to “assume responsibility for the full implementation of the obligations contained in the Final Act and other documents of the CSCE”. 7

      At present, the attitude to the agreements within the framework of the CSCE as having a binding character has become generally recognized. However, the question of the nature of the binding force of these documents is still a matter of controversy.

      There are two main points of view on this issue: according to the first, the acts of the CSCE are in the nature of political agreements, and their binding force is of a moral and political nature; 8 the second recognizes the legal force of these associate professors, the content of international legal norms in them. 9 Recent trends in the development of the CSCE process, qualitative changes in it, the essence of which will be described below, have proved the correctness of the second point of view.

      The international legal doctrine proceeds from the theory of concordance of the wills of states as a way of creating international legal norms. The most common source of international law is an international treaty, however, it cannot be considered as the only form of agreement of wills. In addition, there are other generally recognized sources, such as international customs and mandatory normative resolutions of international organizations, as well as a special form of harmonization of the wills of states - the final documents of international conferences, to which the Final Act belongs. Its legal force is not diminished by the fact that the prescriptions contained in it are different in the nature of their binding nature. It contains both legal norms and non-normative provisions, both imperative and non-normative provisions coexist. But the combination of normative and non-normative provisions in one document does not eliminate its qualification as a source! law, since the rules of law are still present in it. 10

      The interpretation of CSCE documents as sources of international law is of particular importance in connection with the gradual transition of the CSCE into a new quality - the quality of an international organization of a regional nature. Throughout the history of the existence of the CSCE, a sequence of steps in this direction can be traced.

      The meeting in Helsinki laid the foundation for the organizational process of building a system of security and cooperation in Europe. In the section of the outcome document “Following the Meeting”, the participating States expressed their desire to continue the multilateral process initiated by the Meeting and to implement the provisions of the Final Act.

      A whole series of meetings of representatives of states at various levels was planned. Even then, in the aggregate of these meetings, some organizational unity was seen, as well as the possibility of giving the process a more organized form.

      The first was the Belgrade Meeting of the States Parties to the Pan-European Conference, held in the capital of Yugoslavia from October 4, 1977 to March 9, 1978. At this meeting, an in-depth exchange of views took place on the implementation of the Final Act and on the development of the detente process in the future. The final document of the Belgrade meeting, adopted on March 8, 1978, emphasized the determination of the participating countries "to implement in a unilateral, bilateral and multilateral manner all the provisions of the Final Act." eleven

      At the Madrid meeting, the participating states managed to reach agreements that create new opportunities for expanding their cooperation in various fields, for intensifying their efforts in the interests of strengthening European and global peace. The meeting ended on September 9, 1983 with the adoption of the final document, which was fully based on the principles and provisions of the Helsinki Final Act. The final document confirmed that it is necessary to strictly and rigorously respect and put into practice the ten Helsinki principles, by which the states participating in the all-European meeting have committed themselves to be guided in their mutual relations. The intention was also confirmed to take further steps to reduce or gradually eliminate all kinds of obstacles to the development of trade, to expand economic, scientific and technical ties.

      An important agreement reached at the Madrid meeting was the decision to convene a conference of states on confidence-building, security and disarmament measures in Europe, which began on January 17, 1984, in Stockholm. The main achievement of this conference was the adoption of a set of complementary confidence- and security-building measures. The document of the Stockholm Conference is a politically significant achievement, and the measures contained in it are an important step in efforts aimed at reducing the danger of military confrontation in Europe. 12

      The next main stage of the CSCE process was the Vienna meeting of the representatives of the states-participants of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe. The meeting was held from November 1986 to January 1989. It brought to the fore one of the main elements of the CSCE process - the human dimension, which had not been in the spotlight before, in contrast to the military issue. The final document of the Vienna meeting significantly expanded the provisions of the Final Act concerning human rights and humanitarian cooperation. 13 It is of fundamental importance that a permanent mechanism has been established to monitor the fulfillment of obligations in this area by participating States - the so-called Vienna Mechanism. On this occasion, significant differences arose between East and West. The question arose whether the human dimension mechanism would not contradict the basic principle of international law - non-interference in the internal affairs of other states. This principle continues to be one of the fundamental foundations of international communication. However, states, voluntarily assuming appropriate obligations, can to a certain extent limit the scope of their internal competence, which is not subject to interference. The primacy of universal human values ​​over national or group values ​​is also directly related to ensuring human rights. The above is of particular importance in connection with the issue of recognizing the binding force of agreements within the framework of the CSCE.

      The essence of the Vienna Mechanism was the decision of the participating States:

      1) exchange information and respond to requests for information and representations made to them by other participants on matters relating to the human dimension of the CSCE;

      2) to hold bilateral meetings with other participating States in order to study issues relating to the human dimension of the CSCE, including situations and specific cases, with a view to resolving them;

      3) that any participating State that considers it necessary may draw the attention of other participating States through diplomatic channels to situations and cases concerning the human dimension of the CSCE;

      4) that any participating State may provide contact information in accordance with the above paragraphs at CSCE meetings. fourteen

      The Vienna Conference decided that three Human Dimension Meetings should be held. Three meetings-conferences on the human dimension were held: in Paris - in 1989, in Copenhagen - in 1990 and in Moscow - in 1991. These meetings significantly strengthened and expanded the Vienna Mechanism, creating a system of international non-violent action to protect human rights, democracy and the rule of law.

      The Copenhagen Document strengthened the Vienna Mechanism by setting specific deadlines for responding to requests for information. 15 This was followed by the Moscow Document, whose three main parts, concerning respectively the strengthening of the human dimension mechanism, the rule of law and human rights obligations, supplemented and strengthened the Copenhagen Document. For the first time, its preamble stated unequivocally that "questions relating to freedoms, democracy and the rule of law are of an international character" and that "the commitments made by them in areas of the human dimension of the CSCE, are issues of direct and legitimate interest to all participating States, and do not belong exclusively to the internal affairs of the respective state”, 16 The innovation of the Moscow Conference was the possibility of sending independent missions of experts and speakers, in including against the will of the state that violates human rights. To achieve this goal, the participating States took an important step - they came into conflict with an important principle of the CSCE: the rule of consensus (see below). Thus, the foundations for the procedure of international control were laid.

      On November 19-21, 1990, a meeting of the heads of state and government of 34 CSCE member countries took place in Paris. The main question that was discussed at it was this: what should be the future of Europe and pan-European cooperation.

      The outcome of the meeting was the adoption of a document called the Charter of Paris for a New Europe. It noted the profound changes and fundamental socio-political changes that had taken place in Eastern Europe, and contained the statement that "the era of confrontation and division of Europe is over." 17 The participants of the meeting reaffirmed their adherence to the ten principles of the Final Act and stated that from now on their relations will be based on mutual respect and cooperation. The Charter clearly states the right to equal security for all and the freedom to choose how to ensure one's own security.

      Let us especially note this meeting in connection with the fact that it marked the beginning of a new stage in the institutionalization of the pan-European process and the transition of the CSCE to a new quality. In the section of the Charter of Paris entitled “New Structures and Institutions of the CSCE Process”, the participating States stated that “joint efforts to ensure respect for human rights, democracy and promote unity in Europe require a new quality of political dialogue and cooperation and thus , development of CSCE structures”. The organizational and procedural conditions for the establishment of these structures were contained in the "Supplementary Document", which was adopted together with the Charter of Paris. Thus, there was a transition from the general principles of creating a system of security and cooperation in Europe, proclaimed by the Final Act of 1975, to building specific structures of the system.

      One of the bodies created at the Paris meeting was the Council of Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the CSCE member states. On January 30-31, 1992, a meeting of the Council took place in Prague, at which the process of institutionalization was continued and changes were made regarding certain bodies and procedures.

      This important milestone was followed by the next one - the Helsinki Meeting of Heads of State and Government of the CSCE participating countries, which took place in the capital of Finland on July 9-10, 1992 (Helsinki-2). The document “The Challenge of Change” adopted at the Helsinki meeting consolidated the main results of the first stage of the CSCE's transition to a new quality - the quality of an international organization. 18 The CSCE received broad powers to take practical measures and various means of their implementation. The Helsinki Document includes the Summit Declaration and a package of decisions on the structure and main activities of the CSCE. The Helsinki Document continues to develop structures to ensure that crises are overcome by political means and creates new mechanisms for conflict prevention and crisis management.

      In the field of the human dimension, the meeting in Helsinki demonstrated the growing concern of the participating States about violations of the rights of persons belonging to national minorities, the growing number of refugees and displaced persons. An important place was occupied by provisions aimed at strengthening the obligations of the participating states in these areas.

      Agreements were reached on intensifying economic, scientific, technical and environmental cooperation in the CSCE region.

      The Helsinki-2 meeting played an important role in creating the necessary prerequisites for the practical use of the CSCE as an instrument for maintaining peace, stability and security in the region.

      On December 14-15, 1992, a regular meeting of the CSCE Council took place in Stockholm. At this meeting, a document was adopted that summed up the 20-year efforts of the participating states of the pan-European process to develop a comprehensive system for the peaceful settlement of international disputes. 19 Work on it was carried out at regular meetings of CSCE participants, as well as at four special expert meetings (Montreux, 1978; Athens, 1984; La Valette, 1991; Geneva, 1992). At the last meeting, final recommendations were developed, which were adopted by the CSCE Council at the Stockholm meeting.

      And finally, on December 5-6, 1994, another meeting was held in Budapest, in which the heads of state and government of 52 CSCE countries, as well as Macedonia as an observer, took part, and which today is the last major step towards the formation OSCE.

      The process of transforming the Helsinki process from a forum of predominantly political dialogue into a regional Euro-Atlantic organization for maintaining military-political stability and developing cooperation is characterized by three main features: the institutionalization of the CSCE, changes in its powers and changes in procedure.

      As noted above, the beginning of a new stage of institutionalization, namely, the creation of permanent bodies, the presence of which is one of the main features of an international organization, was initiated at the Paris Summit in 1990. Then the following permanent bodies were created:

      1. Council of Foreign Ministers - the central forum for regular political consultations within the framework of the CSCE process. Its competence included the consideration of issues related to the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, and the adoption of appropriate decisions, as well as the preparation of meetings of the Heads of State and Government of the participating States and the implementation of the decisions adopted at these meetings,

      2. Committee of Senior Officials (CSO), whose function was to prepare meetings of the Council, draw up the agenda and implement its decisions, review current problems and consider issues of the future work of the CSCE with the right to make decisions on them, including in the form of recommendations to the Council.

      3. Secretariat- body of administrative service of consultations of all levels.

      4. Center for Conflict Prevention to assist the Council in reducing the risk of conflict. Its role was to promote the implementation of the confidence- and security-building measures developed at the Stockholm Conference. These measures included a mechanism for consultation and cooperation regarding unusual military activities, the exchange of military information, a communication network, annual performance review meetings, and cooperation regarding dangerous incidents of a military nature.

      5. Bureau of Free Elections to facilitate contacts and exchange of information on elections in the participating States.

      6. Parliamentary Assembly as a body uniting members of parliaments of all participating states.

      Subsequently, the composition of the bodies and their powers were repeatedly changed towards expansion in order to make them more effective.

      Thus, at the Prague meeting, the Council of Foreign Ministers of the CSCE participating States transformed the Bureau for Free Elections into Bureau for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODHR) giving it additional features. 20 This was done with the aim of expanding practical cooperation between participating States in the field of the human dimension.

      At the Prague meeting was created within the framework of the Committee of Senior Officials Economic Forum, to give a political impetus to the dialogue on the transition to a free market economy and its development and to propose practical steps towards the development of free market systems and economic cooperation.

      For the Center for Conflict Prevention established at the Paris Meeting, the Prague Document set new tasks and measures to strengthen the functions and improve the working methods of the CPC.

      At the meeting of heads of state and government in Helsinki in 1992, decisions were made according to which the Council and the Committee of Senior Officials as the agent of the Council became the institutional core of the CSCE. 21 The role of the central and governing body of the CSCE was assigned to the Council, and along with the adoption of operational decisions, the CSO was entrusted with the functions of management and coordination. Direct the day-to-day activities of the CSCE entrusted to the Chairman-in-Office, who shall bring the decisions of the Council and the CSO to the attention of the institutions of the CSCE and give them, if necessary, appropriate recommendations on these decisions.

      To assist the President, a Troika Institute(composed of the previous, current and subsequent chairmen acting jointly), as well as ad hoc task forces set up on a case-by-case basis, in particular for conflict prevention, crisis management and dispute resolution, and personal representatives of the Chairperson.

      The post was established CSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, which operates under the auspices of the CSO and should contribute to the prevention of conflicts at the earliest possible stage.

      CSCE Forum for Security Co-operation was established as a permanent body of the CSCE to solve the following main tasks: conducting new negotiations on arms control, disarmament and confidence and security building; expansion of regular consultations, intensification of cooperation on issues related to security; reducing the risk of conflict.

      An important milestone in the process of institutionalization and expansion of the powers of the CSCE was the Convention on Conciliation and Arbitration within the CSCE adopted on December 14-15, 1992 in Stockholm and the Regulations on the CSCE Conciliation Commission. 22 The Convention provides for the creation Courts of Conciliation and Arbitration for the settlement by conciliation and, where appropriate, arbitration of disputes referred to it by the CSCE participating States.

      At the Budapest meeting, the Committee of Senior Officials was transformed into Leadership Council. Its functions include the discussion and formulation of guiding principles of a political and general budgetary nature. The Governing Council also convenes as an Economic Forum.

      In addition to the institutionalization of the CSCE process and the acquisition of new powers, one more main sign of its acquisition of a new quality can be cited: there has been a dynamic development of both formal and internal CSCE principles and procedures, which have undergone significant changes.

      Let us consider the fundamental changes that have been made to the cornerstone of the CSCE - the rule of consensus.

      As mentioned above, the rules of procedure developed in the Final Recommendations of the Helsinki consultations provided that decisions at the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe would be taken by consensus. This was of great importance, as it encouraged the participating States to resolve differences of opinion regarding the content of any provisions. As a result, there were always such formulations that no state opposed, although it took a long time to achieve this.

      The use of consensus in dealing with critical issues is generally positive. “The use of consensus,” writes A. N. Kovalev, “is intended to serve to prevent the imposition of someone else's will on states with the help of a mechanical majority. At the same time, the consensus rule contains the potential for abuse by those who seek to delay, slow down the adoption of agreements, and obstruct the achievement of agreement. 23 However, in view of the potential for unproductive use of consensus, the participating States of the CSCE agreed that the rules of procedure of the Helsinki meeting would be applied by subsequent meetings.

      The rule of consensus is closely connected with another fundamental principle of the CSCE - the principle of non-interference in internal affairs (principle VI of the Final Act of the Helsinki Conference). 24 This principle has often been used as a sort of caveat: some states have viewed exposure of human rights violations in these countries as unacceptable interference in their internal affairs. In addition, the special nature of territorial conflicts, as well as conflicts related to minority problems and the collapse of states, requires the ability of international organizations to participate in their elimination in order to protect peoples and peoples.

      With the establishment of the Vienna Mechanism (1989), the foundations for the international control procedure were laid. The emergence of a mechanism of emergency and preventive measures meant that "there was an opportunity for international non-violent action to protect human rights, democracy and the rule of law." 25 The end of the period of confrontation between the two systems made possible further progress in this direction: the result of the Moscow Conference on the Human Dimension was the possibility of sending a commission of experts also against the will of the state violating human rights. To achieve this goal, it was necessary to come into conflict with the CSCE principle named above: the rule of consensus.

      The next important step towards modifying the consensus principle was the Prague meeting of the CSCE Council, at which, in order to protect human rights, democracy and the rule of law, an important decision was made that “the Council or the Committee of Senior Officials may, if necessary, - and without the consent of the state concerned, in cases of clear, flagrant and uncorrected violation of relevant CSCE commitments - appropriate action is taken.

      Such actions will consist of political statements or other political steps that will be taken outside the territory of such a state.” 26 As we can see, a new mechanism has appeared, called “consensus minus one”.

      Returning to the principle of non-interference in internal affairs, it should be noted that the participating States formulated their attitude to this issue in the preamble of the Moscow Document of the Conference on the Human Dimension of the CSCE, which stated that “issues relating to human rights, fundamental freedoms, democracy and the rule of of law are of an international character” and that “the commitments they have made in the field of the human dimension of the CSCE are matters of direct and legitimate interest to all participating States and do not belong exclusively to the internal affairs of the state concerned” .

      The principle of consensus does not apply when decisions are taken in the CSCE Parliamentary Assembly, where a majority of votes is required, as well as when the mechanism of emergency measures and the mechanism of preventive measures for resolving crisis situations adopted in Helsinki are put into operation (the consent of 11 states is sufficient). gifts).

      A major change is the adoption at the Stockholm meeting of the CSCE Council of the “Regulations on directive reconciliation”. 27 According to this instrument, the Council of Ministers or the Committee of Senior Officials may order any two participating States to resort to conciliation in order to assist them in resolving a dispute which they have failed to resolve within a reasonable period of time. . However, “the parties to a dispute may exercise any rights they normally have to participate in all deliberations within the Council or the CSO regarding the dispute, but they will not participate in a decision by the Council or the CSO directing the parties to resort to conciliation proceedings. ". This element of the peace settlement system was called by the CSCE participants the "consensus minus two" procedure.

      Examples can be used to trace an important trend in the development of the all-European process - the modification of the rules of procedure during the transition of the CSCE to a new quality.

      The above changes that have taken place in the pan-European process since the convening of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe in 1975 to the present day, and give reason to say that at present the CSCE corresponds to the signs of international organizations identified in the international -legal research. So, according to X. Shermers, an international organization is characterized by three main features: 1) the contractual basis of the organization, i.e. the existence of an international agreement of states on the creation of an organization that determines its functions and powers; 2) the presence of permanent bodies; 3) subordination of its establishment and activities to international law. 28

      E. A. Shibaeva noted that the concept of an international organization she formulated allows us to speak about five of its constituent features: 1) a contractual basis; 2) the presence of certain goals; 3) appropriate organizational structure; 4) independent rights;) and duties; 5) establishment in accordance with international law. 29

      It should be noted that the first and last signs in this definition repeat each other, since any international treaty must comply with international law.

      The broadest definition was given by E. T. Usenko, who believes that the signs of an international organization developed by the theory and practice of international relations cover the following: 1) the organization was created and operates on the basis of an interstate agreement; 2) its members are the states themselves; 3) it has its own will; 4) it has organs that form and express its will; 5) it must be lawful; 6) it promotes the cooperation of states or organizes the cooperation of states in the field of their exercise of their sovereign rights. thirty

      The main, integral and necessary features of an international organization are the contractual basis of the organization, the presence of permanent organs and its own will. An international organization is characterized by the organizational and legal unity of its member states, which can only be achieved on the basis of an agreement between them, which is usually referred to as a constituent act. Although, as a rule, such a constituent act is an interstate treaty in the sense given to this concept by the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, the creation of an international organization on the basis of the so-called “informal treaty” does not change the essence of the matter. 31 In the case of the CSCE, we have a number of interstate agreements and, although none of them is a constituent act in the literal sense, in the aggregate they contain all the necessary provisions characteristic of constituent documents, namely: 1) the goals of an interstate association; 2) functions and powers; 3) conditions of membership; 4) organizational structure of the organization; 5) competence of bodies; 6) the procedure for the adoption by the bodies of acts within their powers.

      The specificity of the CSCE process is that the transition to the quality of an international organization occurred gradually and most of the signs of a constituent act listed above appeared in the Conference documents only after the Paris Summit in 1990. At this meeting, permanent bodies were created, the presence which is one of the main features of the organization. Another important condition that characterizes the essence of an international organization is the compliance of its activities with international law.

      According to Art. 2 of the UN Charter, the United Nations acts in accordance with the principles set forth in this article, that is, in accordance with the basic principles of international law. As for regional organizations, in paragraph 1 of Art. Article 54 of the UN Charter requires that “such agreements or bodies and their activities” be “consistent from Goals and Principles of the Organization”. A statement on this issue is contained in paragraph 25 of the Declaration of the Helsinki Summit of the CSCE in 1992, which, in particular, states that “reaffirming the commitment to the Charter of the United Nations, which our states proclaimed, we declare that we consider the CSCE as a regional a national agreement in the sense of Chapter VIII of the Charter of the United Nations...Rights and duties remain unaffected and are preserved in full. The CSCE will carry out its activities in close cooperation with the United Nations, especially in the field of conflict prevention and settlement”. 32

      It is also necessary to note such a sign as the possession of an international organization by its own will. In this regard, the above modification of the consensus rule is of great importance. With the change in this principle, the CSCE began to have its own will, which does not always coincide with the will of all its members.

      Thus, the recent major meetings of the CSCE, namely the Paris Summit, which marked the beginning of a new stage of institutionalization, the Berlin, Prague and Stockholm meetings of the Council, the Helsinki and Budapest meetings of heads of state and government, summed up and consolidated the main results of the first stage. transforming the OSCE, in terms of its capabilities, status and competence, into a regional organization for maintaining military-political stability and developing cooperation in Europe. As a basis, a comprehensive vision of the problems of ensuring security is preserved, accordingly, the OSCE mandate is confirmed to intensify not only political and military cooperation, but also interaction in the field of the human dimension; in the field of economics, ecology, science and technology. The OSCE has received broad powers to take practical measures and various means of their implementation.

      The necessary adjustments will be made to the functioning of the OSCE, as it acquires the relevant experience. Work will continue on improving the mechanisms for resolving disputes and settling conflicts, on improving interaction with other organizations. However, the necessary prerequisites have already been created for the practical use of the OSCE as an instrument for maintaining peace, stability and security in the Euro-Atlantic region.

      *Postgraduate student of St. Petersburg State University.

      ©A.B. Makarenko, 1997.

      1 Meeting Heads of State and Government of the CSCE Member States // Diplomatic Bulletin. No. 1. 1995.

      2 Sobakin V.K. Equal security. M., 1984.

      3 Talalaev A. N. Helsinki: Principles and Reality. M., 1985.

      4 For details, see: Mazov V. A. Helsinki principles and international law. M, 1979. S. 16.

      5 In the name of peace, security and cooperation: On the results of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, held in Helsinki on July 30 - August 1. 1975 M., 1975.

      7 final document of the 1986 Vienna meeting of the representatives of the participating states of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe. M, 1989.

      8 Lukashuk I.I. International political norms for the conditions of detente // Soviet state and law. 1976. No. 8.

      9 Malinin S. A. Meeting in Helsinki (1975) and international law // Jurisprudence. 1976. No. 2. S. 20-29; Ignatenko G.V. The final act of the all-European meeting in Helsinki // Ibid. No. 3.

      10 For more on this, see: Malinin S. A. Meeting in Helsinki (1975) and international law; Ignatenko G.V. The final act of the all-European meeting in Helsinki.

      11 Talalaev A. N. Helsinki: Principles and Reality. S. 184.

      12 For more see: Alov O. Stockholm Conference on Confidence, Security and Disarmament Building Measures in Europe // International Yearbook: Politics and Economics. M., 1985.

      13 final document of the Vienna meeting in 1986 of the representatives of the states-participants of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe.

      14 Ibid. pp. 50-51.

      15 Document Copenhagen Meeting, 5-29 June 1990: Conference on Human Change of the CSCE. M., 1990.

      16 For more see: Kofod M. Moscow meeting on human change // Moscow Journal of International Law. 1992. No. 2. S. 41-45.

      17 Pan-European Summit, Paris, November 19-21, 1990: Documents and materials. M.. 1991.

      18 CSCE. Helsinki Document 1992 II Moscow Journal of International Law. 1992. No. 4. S. 180-204.

      19 results CSCE Meetings on the Peaceful Settlement of Disputes (Geneva, October 12-23, 1992) // Moscow Journal of International Law. 1993. No. 3. S. 150 171.

      20 Prague document on the further development of CSCE institutions and structures // Moscow Journal of International Law. 1992. No. 2. S. 165-172.

      21 CSCE. Helsinki Document 1992.

      22 results CSCE Meeting on the Peaceful Settlement of Disputes (Geneva, October 12-23, 1992).

      23 Kovalev A. N. ABC of diplomacy. M., 1977. S. 251.

      24 In the name of peace, security and cooperation: On the results of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, held on 8 Helsinki 30 July - 1 Aug. 1975, p. 20.

      25 Kreikemeier A. On the way to a unified system of values ​​within the framework of the CSCE // Moscow Journal of International Law. 1993. No. 3. S. 66.

      26 Prague document on the further development of CSCE institutions and structures.

      27 results meeting of the CSCE on the peaceful settlement of disputes (Geneva, October 12-23, 1992).

      28 Schermer H. international institutional law. Leiden, 1972. V.I.

      29 Shibaeva E. A. Law of international organizations. M., 1986.

      30 Usenko E. T. The Council for Mutual Economic Assistance is a subject of international law // Soviet Yearbook of International Law, 1979. M, 1980. S. 20, 42.

      31 For details, see: Ibid. pp. 22-23.

      32 CSCE. Helsinki Document 1992.

    Information updated:24.04.2000

    Related materials:
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    Autonomous organizations of the OECD

    One of the most powerful organizations that make up the OECD system is the "Group of Seven", created in 1975 to resolve global financial and currency issues at the level of heads of government of the leading Western countries. In 1997, Russia joined this organization, and the group became known as the "Big Eight" (Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Canada, USA, France, Japan, Russia).

    At the meetings of the organization, issues of achieving a balanced growth dynamics of the main exchange rates, coordinating and harmonizing economic development strategies, and developing a common economic course for the world's leading countries are considered.

    An autonomous body within the OECD is the International Energy Agency (MEA), established in 1974, with the participation of all OECD member countries, with the exception of Iceland and Mexico.

    The organizational structure of the MEA includes: the Governing Council, which consists of high-ranking representatives of each state responsible for energy issues; permanent groups and special committees (on issues of long-term cooperation in the field of energy, emergencies, oil markets, etc.); The secretariat, composed of experts in the field of energy, performs support functions.

    The main goals and objectives of the MEA:

    Cooperation on the development and use of various energy sources;

    Measures to improve the efficiency of energy use;

    Ensuring the continuous functioning of the information system on the state of the international oil market;

    Establishing cooperation with countries that are not members of the MEA, and international organizations to solve global problems of energy development;

    Improving the system for overcoming violations in the supply of electricity.

    The OECD system also includes the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA), formed in 1958 with the participation of OECD member countries, with the exception of New Zealand and the Republic of Korea. The goal of this organization is cooperation between the governments of the participating countries in the use of nuclear energy as a safe, economical source.

    The main functions of the Nuclear Energy Agency include: - assessment of the contribution of nuclear energy to the overall energy supply; - Development of a system for the exchange of scientific and technical information; - Organization of international studies, preparation of programs for the development of nuclear energy; - Encouragement of cooperation in the harmonization of policies and practices in the regulation of nuclear energy (protection of people from radiation and protection of the environment).

    The organizational structure of the Agency includes the following units: Council of the OECD; Executive Committee for Nuclear Energy; five specialized committees (on the development of nuclear energy and the fuel cycle; on the regulation of activities in the field of nuclear energy; on the safety of nuclear devices, on radiation protection; on health protection).

    International organizations of general competence within economic cooperation

    Organizations of general competence include organizations formed after the collapse of colonial empires or as a result of the macro-regionalization of world economic relations.

    The most important of them are the Council of Europe, the Commonwealth of Nations, the Nordic Cooperation Organization, the League of Arab States, the Organization for Security and Cooperation, the Organization of the Islamic Conference.

    1. The Council of Europe (with 46 countries, founded in 1949) is a broad-based organization that covers the following areas of activity: human rights, the media, legal cooperation, social and economic issues; healthcare, education, culture, youth, sports, environmental protection. The Council of Europe develops pan-European conventions and agreements, which are the basis for appropriate changes in national legislation in order to harmonize them.

    Ukraine has chosen a democratic path of development that meets the standards of the European community. At the headquarters of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg (France) on November 9, 1995, a solemn ceremony of Ukraine's entry into this organization took place. The Council of Europe has developed a number of programs to promote democratic and legal reforms in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, for the implementation of which about 10 million US dollars have been provided. The programs concerned local self-government, judiciary, and elections. Thus, the Demosthenes program provided for an expert analysis of draft bilateral agreements to ensure the rights of national minorities, which Ukraine proposed to conclude with new independent states on the territory of the former USSR. The Council of Europe provides advisory assistance in the development of curricula for the training of lawyers in Ukraine (for example, at the Institute of International Relations of Taras Shevchenko University of Kyiv). Representatives of our state participate in the work of the main and special committees of the Council of Europe, in particular on human rights, social security, migration, cultural heritage, and the media. Ukrainian experts worked in the committee on legal issues of refugees and stateless persons, the rights of national minorities and their linguistic rights. Ukraine has become one of the contracting parties to some conventions of the Council of Europe, the European Cultural Convention, the European Framework Convention on Frontier Cooperation between Territorial Communities and Authorities, the European Convention on Information Concerning Foreign Legislation, as well as conventions on combating crime and protecting the rights of national minorities.

    2. The Commonwealth of Nations (including 53 countries and was formed in 1931) operates in the following main areas: support for political and economic cooperation; promoting the sustainable development of the economies of the participating countries; consulting, representative and information tasks; development and implementation of programs for the development of the Commonwealth; organizing and holding conferences to adopt declarations on various issues of world politics. In 1987, the Declaration on World Trade was adopted; in 1991 - the Declaration of Fundamental Rights.

    3. The Nordic Cooperation Organization, including five countries, was established in 1971. its main tasks are: improving the quality and competitiveness of products of the northern region; ensuring environmental protection and environmentally sustainable use of natural resources; growth in the level of employment, improvement of working conditions and social security.

    4. The League of Arab States (LAS) was established in 1945. its members are 21 Arab countries and the Palestinian Authority. The purpose of the functioning is the thoroughness and coordination of the participating countries in various fields, the protection of national security and independence.

    5. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), established in 1975, has 55 countries, the main tasks are 6: achieving sustainable economic development; improving contacts and practical cooperation on environmental protection; promotion of international peace and security.

    6. The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) includes 57 Muslim states. II was established in 1969 with the aim of deepening cooperation in economic, social and scientific issues, holding consultations between participating countries in international organizations, strengthening Muslim solidarity.

    FEDERAL FISHING AGENCY

    KAMCHATKA STATE TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY

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    OPTION NUMBER 4

    TOPIC:International organizations of general competence and their activities in the field of economic cooperation: Council of Europe; Commonwealth of Nations; League of Arab States; Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe - OSCE.

    Performed Checked

    Student of group 06AUs IO head

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      Introduction. page 3 - 5

      Council of Europe. pages 6 - 12

      Commonwealth of Nations. pp. 13 – 15

      League of Arab States. pp. 15 – 18

      Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe - OSCE

    pp. 19 – 26

      Bibliography.

    Introduction.

    In modern international relations, international organizations play a significant role as a form of cooperation between states and multilateral diplomacy.

    Since the establishment of the Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine in 1815, international organizations have been endowed with their own competence and authority.

    Modern international organizations are characterized by further expansion of their competence and complication of the structure.

    Currently, there are more than 4 thousand international organizations, of which more than 300 are intergovernmental. At the center of them is the UN.

    An interstate organization is characterized by the following features:

      state membership;

      existence of a constituent international treaty;

      permanent bodies;

      respect for the sovereignty of member states.

    Taking into account these features, it can be stated that an international intergovernmental organization is an association of states established on the basis of an international treaty to achieve common goals, having permanent bodies and acting in the common interests of member states while respecting their sovereignty.

    The main feature of non-governmental international organizations is that they are not created on the basis of an interstate agreement (for example, the Association of International Law, the League of Red Cross Societies, etc.).

    According to the nature of membership, international organizations are divided into interstate and non-governmental. According to the circle of participants, international organizations are divided into universal (UN, its specialized agencies) and regional (Organization of African Unity, Organization of American States). International organizations are also subdivided into organizations of general competence (UN, OAU, OAS) and special (Universal Postal Union, International Labor Organization). Classification according to the nature of powers makes it possible to single out interstate and supranational organizations. The vast majority of international organizations belong to the first group. The goal of supranational organizations is integration. For example, the European Union. From the point of view of the procedure for joining them, organizations are divided into open (any state can become a member at its own discretion) and closed (admission with the consent of the founders).

    International organizations are created by states. The process of creating an international organization takes place in three stages: the adoption of a constituent document, the creation of the material structure of the organization, and the convening of the main bodies.

    The first step involves convening an international conference to develop and adopt the text of the treaty. Its name may be different, for example, statute (League of Nations), charter (UN, OAS, OAU), convention (UPU, WIPO).

    The second stage involves the creation of the material structure of the organization. For these purposes, specially trained bodies are most often used, which prepare draft rules of procedure for future bodies of the organization, process the entire range of issues related to the creation of headquarters, etc.

    The convening of the main organs completes the arrangements for the creation of an international organization.

      Council of Europe.

    It is an international regional organization uniting the countries of Europe. The Charter of the Council was signed in London on May 5, 1949, and entered into force on August 3, 1949. The Council of Europe was founded in 1949 and currently includes 41 states. The purpose of this organization is to achieve rapprochement between the participating States by promoting the expansion of democracy and the protection of human rights, as well as cooperation in matters of culture, education, health, youth, sports, law, information, environmental protection. The main bodies of the Council of Europe are located in Strasbourg (France).

    The Council of Europe plays an important role in the development of common European legislation and, in particular, in dealing with the legal and ethical problems that arise in connection with the achievements of scientific and technological progress. The activities of the Council of Europe are aimed at developing conventions and agreements, on the basis of which the unification and changes in the legislation of the member states are subsequently carried out. Conventions are the main elements of interstate legal cooperation that are binding on the states that have ratified them. Among the conventions related to the legal support of entrepreneurial activity is the convention on laundering, detection, seizure and confiscation of the proceeds of crime.

    Twice (in 1993 and 1997) meetings of the heads of state and government of the countries of the Council of Europe were held. Within the framework of the Committee of Ministers, which is the highest body of the organization and meets twice a year as part of the foreign ministers of the member countries, the political aspects of cooperation in these areas are discussed and recommendations are adopted (on the basis of unanimity) to the governments of the member countries, as well as declarations and resolutions on international political issues related to the sphere of activity of the Council of Europe. The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, recently created as an organ of the Council of Europe, aims to promote the development of local democracy. Several dozens of committees of experts organize intergovernmental cooperation in areas falling within the competence of the Council of Europe.

    The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, which is an advisory body of the Council of Europe, and in which parliamentarians of national legislative bodies (including from opposition parties) are represented, is very active. The Parliamentary Assembly is an advisory body and has no legislative powers. It consists of representatives of the parliaments of the member states of the Council of Europe. Each national delegation is formed in such a way that it represents the interests of various political circles in its country, including opposition parties. It is the main initiator of the activities carried out by the Council of Europe and holds its plenary meetings three times a year, adopting by majority vote recommendations to the Committee of Ministers and national governments, organizing parliamentary hearings, conferences, colloquia, forming various committees and subcommittees, study groups, etc. supervising the following economic and social areas:

      economic and development issues;

      agriculture and rural development;

      science and technology;

      social issues;

      Environment.

    Significant is the political role of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, who is elected by the Parliamentary Assembly, organizes the organization's daily work and speaks on its behalf, making diverse contacts in the international arena.

    In all the main areas of its activity, the Council of Europe carries out numerous activities that contribute not only to the development of cooperation between member states, but also to the formation of some common guidelines for them in the organization of public life. The number of representatives from each country (from 2 to 18) depends on the size of its population. The Council of the Assembly consists of the Chairman and 17 deputies. Elections of the President of the Assembly are held every year. The Parliamentary Assembly holds its plenary sessions three times a year. It adopts by majority vote recommendations to the Committee of Ministers and the governments of the member states, which form the basis of specific areas of activity of the Council of Europe. The Assembly organizes conferences, colloquia, open parliamentary hearings, elects the Secretary General of the Council of Europe and judges of the European Court of Human Rights. In 1989, the Parliamentary Assembly established the status of a specially invited country to provide it to the countries of Central and Eastern Europe before their admission to full members. This status is still retained by the Republic of Belarus.

    The structure of the Council of Europe includes an administrative and technical secretariat, headed by the Secretary General, who is elected for five years.

    The international political confrontation that existed on the continent made it impossible for the socialist countries to participate in the Council of Europe. With the end of the Cold War, the activities of this organization were given a new impetus, prompting it to focus on issues of democratic transformation. As a result, even joining the Council of Europe became an additional incentive for their implementation. Thus, the states newly admitted to the Council of Europe had to undertake the obligation to sign the European Convention on Human Rights, which entered into force in 1953, and to accept the totality of its control mechanisms. The conditions for the accession of new members to the Council of Europe are also the existence of a democratic legal system and the holding of free, equal and general elections. It is also important that many questions of the formation of civil society in post-socialist countries have become the subject of attention within the framework of the Council of Europe. Among them are the problems of protecting national minorities, issues of local self-government.

    The Council of Europe is an authoritative international organization, the mere participation in which serves as a kind of evidence for all member states of their compliance with the high standards of pluralistic democracy. Hence the possibility of influencing those countries that are members of the Council (or candidates for accession to the Council of Europe), where this or that problem arises on this basis. At the same time, this may raise fears of the countries concerned regarding unacceptable interference in their internal affairs. In other words, the activity of the Council of Europe often turns out to be inscribed in one or another international political context and is viewed by the participants primarily through the prism of their immediate foreign policy interests; Naturally, quite serious collisions can arise as a result. This happened more than once in practice, for example, in connection with the internal political situation in Turkey in Belarus, the problem of the rights of the Russian-speaking population in some Baltic countries, the separatist movement in Chechnya (Russia), when discussing the issue of Croatia joining the Council of Europe.

    International organizations are subjects of international law. The main feature of non-governmental international organizations is that they are not created on the basis of an interstate agreement and unite individuals and / or legal entities (for example, the Association of International Law, the League of Red Cross Societies, the World Federation of Scientists, etc.).

    Different criteria are generally applied to classify international organizations. By the nature of their membership, they are divided into interstate and non-governmental. According to the circle of participants, international interstate organizations are divided into universal, open to the participation of all states of the world (UN, its specialized agencies), and regional, whose members can be states of the same region (Organization of African Unity, Organization of American States). Interstate organizations are also subdivided into organizations of general and special competence. The activities of organizations of general competence affect all spheres of relations between member states: political, economic, social, cultural, etc. (for example, the UN, OAU, OAS). Organizations of special competence are limited to cooperation in one special area (for example, the Universal Postal Union, the International Labor Organization, etc.) and can be divided into political, economic, social, cultural, scientific, religious, etc. Classification by the nature of powers allows you to highlight interstate and supranational or, more precisely, supranational organizations. The first group includes the overwhelming majority of international organizations whose purpose is to organize interstate cooperation and whose decisions are addressed to member states. The goal of supranational organizations is integration. Their decisions apply directly to citizens and legal entities of the Member States. Some elements of supranationality in this sense are inherent, for example, in the European Union (EU).

    Most organizations are precisely interstate. They do not have supranational power, members do not transfer their powers to them. The task of such organizations is to regulate the cooperation of states.

    International political and economic organizations of general competence:

    United Nations - United Nations

    Big Eight - G 8

    International trade and economic organizations and industrial development organizations:

    International financial institutions:

    World Bank Group

    European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

    Regional Economic Cooperation Organizations

    European Union - EU

    Organization of Asia-Pacific Cooperation - ARES

    Specialized intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations in the field of ICT:

    International Telecommunication Union - ITU

    World Information Technology and Services Alliance - WITSA and others.

    The central place in the system of international organizations belongs to the UN.

    The UN was established to maintain and strengthen international peace and security, to develop cooperation between nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples. The UN Charter was signed on June 26, 1945 in San Francisco by representatives of the 50 founding countries. There are currently 191 member states of the UN. The UN Charter establishes six main organs of the Organization: the General Assembly /GA/, the Security Council /SC/, the UN Economic and Social Council /ECOSOC/, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice and the Secretariat. In addition to the main bodies in the UN system, there are a number of specialized agencies, of which most UN countries are members.

    1.2 Evolution of international organizations

    Today we can say that the monocentric international system of one actor is gradually being replaced by a polycentric international system of many actors.

    The second in terms of role and importance (after the state) actor in international relations are international organizations (IOs). The first MOs appeared as early as the beginning and middle of the 19th century. These were the Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine, which arose in 1815, as well as the Universal Telegraph Union (1865) and the General Postal Union (1874). The first IOs were created in the field of economy, transport, culture, social interests of states and, according to their goals, were aimed at joint cross-border cooperation in the non-political field (law politics).

    The number of such organizations, or, as they were then called, international administrative unions, increased by the beginning of the 20th century. These included a health commission, a flood control commission, a transport union, and others. Increasing industrialization required joint management in the field of chemistry, electrification and transport, thereby necessitating the creation of new MOs. The cross-border flow of goods, services, information and people led to the fact that at the beginning of the twentieth century. a quasi-global, Eurocentric in essence, system of the world economy was formed. The Ministry of Defense played an important role in the management of this system.

    In the political sphere, the predecessors of the first MO appeared after the Congress of Vienna in 1815. Then the so-called European concert, or pentarchy, was formed, consisting of 5 great powers (England, Prussia, Russia, Austria and France). The Concert of Europe can be seen as a prototype of the MOD in the field of security, which claimed a leading role in European affairs. The concert was a system of congresses and conferences, within the framework of which 5 powers resolved issues of settlement and resolution of international crises and conflicts. The main principle of the activity of the European concert was the principle of balance.

    The next important stage in the development of the IR was the activities of the League of Nations, established in 1919. The League of Nations had two significant differences from the Concert of Europe: 1) it was created on the basis of an internationally recognized act - the Statute of the League of Nations; 2) it was built on the principle of collective security.

    Thanks to the institutional forms of international cooperation created by the League, a more reliable support was provided for the future UN.

    Time has shown that the UN Charter turned out to be a much more elective and influential instrument for maintaining international peace and security, as well as developing cooperation in the non-political sphere, than the Statute of the League of Nations. In the second half of the twentieth century. The UN was able to take a central place in the MOD system, coordinating the activities of both governmental and non-governmental MODs.

    The activities of the UN and other IOs took place in a certain international atmosphere, which largely predetermined their successes and failures. In 1945-1990. The UN developed under the decisive influence of two major factors of the post-war system of international relations. The first of these was the "cold war" between East and West, the second - the growing conflict between the economically developed North and the backward and poor South. In this regard, the history of the UN and other MODs is a reflection of the development of the post-war world.



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