EU Statement in response to the address by the Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office on Climate and Security, Ms. Kerstin Stendahl

The European Union warmly welcomes the Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office on Climate and Security, Ms. Kerstin Stendahl, to the Permanent Council and thanks her for her intervention and the activity throughout the year. We highly appreciate the focus of the Finnish Chairpersonship on climate and security. 

We fully share your assessment, Madam Special Representative, that climate change represents one of the most pressing global challenges of our time and requires urgent collective and multilateral action. The triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution continues to threaten peace, stability and prosperity across the OSCE region and beyond.

OSCE, through its comprehensive concept of security, is uniquely positioned to address these challenges and promote cooperative and cross-sectoral responses to climate-related security risks.

Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine continues to aggravate environmental degradation and undermine energy and climate security. The devastating impact of the war on ecosystems, water, soil and air, and on civilian infrastructure, including the serious environmental impact and security risks caused by the Russian shadow fleet, has been documented and discussed at numerous OSCE events this year, including in the Economic and Environmental Committee, the Espoo Climate and Security Conference, and the Chairpersonship Forum – “Building a Resilient Future in a Changing Climate” in Prague.

The EU will continue to support Ukraine’s recovery and climate adaptation, promoting a green, sustainable, and resilient reconstruction that takes into account those most vulnerable to environmental degradation. We also encourage the OSCE to keep addressing the security risks stemming from the economic and environmental consequences of this war.

We commend the OSCE’s ongoing work on climate change and security, in particular the cross-regional Extra-Budgetary project “Strengthening Responses to Security Risks from Climate Change”. The project’s practical activities and innovative use of technologies, including data analysis, remote sensing, and energy security tools, are key to improving early warning and risk assessment. We encourage further strengthening of early warning mechanisms and the integration of climate-security foresight into the OSCE’s work.

We appreciate the activity of the OSCE field operations and the Aarhus Centres, as well as the strong engagement of youth, women, and civil society actors. The European Union attaches great importance to a human rights–based approach and to the protection and meaningful participation of environmental and climate defenders. 

The European Green Deal and the EU Climate Diplomacy framework recognize climate change as a core foreign and security policy priority. Our initiatives, such as the EU Global Gateway, the Team Europe Initiatives on Water, Energy and Climate, and the EU’s Climate, Peace and Security Nexus, offer valuable opportunities for cooperation with the OSCE. We see great complementarity between EU and OSCE action in building climate resilience, supporting adaptation, and mainstreaming climate-security considerations into national and regional policies. In this regard, we encourage closer cooperation between the OSCE and the EU on climate-security foresight and data-based early warning.

We support the leadership of Finland and of the incoming Swiss Chairpersonship in further addressing the climate and security nexus within the OSCE, thus ensuring that climate and environmental issues remain at the core of our deliberations.

Finally, we underline once again that addressing the climate crisis requires collective responsibility. We look forward to continuing our close cooperation with all participating States, the OSCE structures, autonomous institutions and field operations, and partners in civil society to advance a greener, more secure and sustainable future for our region.

____

Albania, Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Republic of Moldova, Serbia, San Marino, Ukraine and the United Kingdom align themselves with this statement.