November 17, 2008 - OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza met with Ambassador Alexandros Mallias, Permanent Observer of Greece to the OAS. Secretary General Insulza and Ambassador Mallias discussed Greek cooperation in the Americas and with the OAS. The Greek ambassador expressed his intention to strengthen Greek cooperation with the Organization and in the Americas. He was particularly interested in learning of the OAS perspective on challenges in the region, and concluded the meeting by offering his congratulations to the OAS Secretary General on the achievements of his OAS administration in strengthening democracy, human rights, security and promoting integral development in the Americas. Recently, Greece announced its intentions to finance programs of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD). 

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November 14, 2008 - From November 10 to 14 2008, Assistant Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), Ambassador Albert Ramdin, and the Director of International Affairs, Dr. Irene Klinger, traveled to Europe to meet with governmental officials in an effort to establish priorities for strengthening collaboration with the OAS.

In London, the OAS delegation met with Parliament Member, Gillian Merron, Permanent Under-Secretary of State of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, in addition to 15 ambassadors from Latin American and the Caribbean at a gathering hosted by the Colombian Ambassador to the United Kingdom Noemi Sanín.

Similarly, Assistant Secretary General Ramdin delivered the keynote speech at the conference “Making
Trade Work for Development in Latin America,” that took place at the Chatham House, an internationally renowned think tank. High level officials and experts attended the event in which Ramdin talked about new approaches to trade policy in the Americas.

In Netherlands, OAS officials also attended the three-day “Global Forum on Leadership for Shared Societies: Building a world safe for difference,” hosted by the Club de Madrid in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The delegation also met with Ambassador Joke Brandt, Deputy Director of International Cooperation for the Ministry of Development Cooperation, to discuss opportunities for collaboration in the areas of fragile states, economic distribution and growth, environmental sustainability, and women’s rights.

The meeting was viewed as largely successful in advancing support from the Foreign Ministry of the Netherlands to OAS activities in the areas of democracy and human rights.

Press Release

 
November 3, 2008 On November 3, 2008, OAS Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza, met with Italian Ambassador to the
United States and Permanent Observer to the OAS, Ambassador Giovanni Castellaneta. Ambassador
Castellaneta and Secretary General Insulza discussed Italy's ongoing collaboration with the
Organization, including the country's continued commitment to the OAS Action Against Antipersonnel
Mines Program (AICMA) through the Secretariat for Multidimensional Security. The meeting between the
two representatives took place just days following an announcement made by the Government of Italy
to contribute over €200,000 to various OAS programs in the region.      
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October 23, 2008 On October 23, 2008, the OAS Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza, received a visit from Regina
Veronica Maria Jones-Bos, the current Permanent Observer of the Netherlands to the OAS and
 Ambassador of the Netherlands to the United States. Secretary General Insulza took the opportunity to
congratulate Ambassador Jones-Bos on her recent appointment of Permanent Observer and welcomed
her to the Organization. The two spoke about various topics on the inter-American agenda, including an
exchange on cooperation between the Netherlands and the OAS. The Secretary General spoke to the
historically strong degree of cooperation between the Netherlands and the OAS, noting that the
Netherlands was the first country to contribute to the OAS Misión de Apoyo al Proceso de Paz en
Colombia (MAPP/OEA) program. Secretary General Insulza added the support of the Netherlands to
OAS programs is highly valued, but also addressed the challenges the Organization is facing in terms of
implementation of its mandates, and appealed to the Ambassador for stronger collaboration.      
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Press Release

 

October 23, 2008
On October 23, 2008, OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza welcomed to OAS Headquarters,
Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the United States and current
Permanent Observer to the OAS. Secretary General Insulza offered his congratulations to the
Ambassador for his recent appointment to the Embassy of Russia in the United States and as Permanent
Observer to the Organization. Ambassador Kislyak and the Secretary General discussed the various
commercial relationships Russia shares with countries in the region, and spoke of ways to strengthen
the capacity of Latin America to compete in the global market. Secretary General Insulza discussed the
work of the Organization and Russia’s collaboration with the OAS as Permanent Observer. He
emphasized the desire for Russia to become more involved in the work of the Organization and
underscored the necessity for increased cooperation between the country and the OAS.
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Press Release
 

 
October 21, 2008
On October 14, His Royal Highness Prince Mired bin Ra'ad bin Zeid al-Hussein of Jordan visited OAS
headquarters in his capacity as President of the Eighth Meeting of the States Parties (8MSP) to the
Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Antipersonnel
Landmines and on their Destruction. During a breakfast meeting with the OAS Secretary General José
Miguel Insulza, Assistant Secretary General Albert Ramdin, Member States and Permanent Observers,
the Prince offered his congratulations for its ongoing work in the area of demining and stressed the
importance of continued cooperation on this effort by both Member States and Permanent Observers.
Secretary General Insulza took the opportunity to highlight the achievements of the OAS Program
against Antipersonnel Landmines and concluded by extending his gratitude to the donor countries,
including Permanent Observers: Denmark, the European Union, France, Italy, Japan, Korea, Norway,
Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

Press Release (Español)
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  October 15, 2008          On October 15, 2008, the OAS Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza, met with the Permanent
Observer of Bulgaria to the OAS, Ambassador Elena Borislavova Poptodorova. The two discussed
Bulgaria's role in the Organization as Permanent Observer, current events in the Western Hemisphere
and engaged in dialogue on strengthening the relationship between the Organization and Bulgaria.     Photo Gallery

  October 14, 2008          On October 14, 2008 Benin has been granted the status of Permanent Observer to the Organization of
  American States, pursuant to General Assembly resolution AG/RES. 50 (I-O/71) and resolution
  CP/RES.945 (1666/08) of the Permanent Council.        

  October 14, 2008          On October 14, 2008 Iceland has been granted the status of Permanent Observer to the Organization
of American States, pursuant to General Assembly resolution AG/RES. 50 (I-O/71) and resolution      
  CP/RES.944 (1666/08) of the Permanent Council.       

  October 10, 2008         On October 10, the OAS Permanent Council held a Protocolary Meeting to commemorate "The
Discovery of the Americas: Encounter of Two Worlds." The event was held to honor the 1492 discovery
of the Americas by Spanish explorer Christopher Columbus, and featured insights by members of the
Permanent Council and others on the evolution of the Americas since its discovery by the Spanish in the
fifteenth century.   Photo Gallery

  October 9, 2008         On October 9, Assistant Secretary General, Albert Ramdin, received a courtesy visit from the
Permanent Observer from the United Kingdom to the OAS, Ambassador Dominick Chilcott. The two
discussed the United Kingdom's role as Permanent Observer with the Organization and worked to
discover additional areas of mutual collaboration.   Photo Gallery

  September 24, 2008  Mr. Stefano Sannino, Director for Latin America of the European Commission met on September 24,
2008 with OAS Assistant Secretary General, Ambassador Albert Ramdin and Ambassador Suzanne
Laporte, Secretary for External Relations of the OAS, to strengthen cooperation between the European
Union and the Organization of Americas States, and to identify areas for increased collaboration. Mr.
Sannino was accompanied with Luc Veron, Minister Counselor and Head of Political and Development,
Delegation of the European Commission in US and Despina Manos Advisor Political & Development
Delegation of the European Commission to the US. The delegation also took the opportunity to meet
with the Executive Secretary of the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights, the Secretary for
Multidimensional Security and the Secretariat for Political Affairs to discuss OAS work in those areas.

During the meeting, it was suggested that the two entities develop a framework agreement in areas
agreed to by both parties in order to achieve more harmonious and effective collaboration. In addition,
the representatives discussed the opportunity for development of a program of exchange of technical
expertise between the EU and OAS on their approaches to confronting regional challenges as a
potential mechanism for increased cooperation to strengthen the work of both organizations.   Photo Gallery

    August 22, 2008   On August 22, the Secretary General met with the Foreign Advisor to the President of the Republic of
  Serbia, Mr. Jovan Ratkovic. He was accompanied by Vladimir Petrovic, Charge d'Affaires of the
  Embassy of the Republic of Serbia to the U.S. and Permanent Observer to the OAS as well as Jelena
  Cukic Matic, Counselor of the Embassy of Serbia to the US.

    August 4, 2008   On August 4, Assistant Secretary General welcomed the new Permanent Observer of Spain to the
  OAS, H.E. Ambassador Javier Sancho. Spain has held the status of Permanent Observer to the OAS
  since January 1972.   Photo Gallery

    July 21, 2008   On July 21 the OAS Secretary General welcomed French ambassadors Jean-Paul Dumont and Marie-
  France Pagnier to the OAS to discuss how the Permanent Observer and the Organization can benefit
  from strengthened cooperation on key issues impacting the hemisphere.    Photo Gallery

    July 18, 2008   On July 18, OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza welcomed the new Permanent Observer of the
  Nigeria to the OAS, Ambassador Babagana Wakil.   Photo Gallery

    June 26, 2008   At the request of the Permanent Mission of Peru (CP/doc.4322/08), a Special Permanent Council
  Meeting was held on June 26, 2008, at 10:30 a.m., in the Simón Bolívar Room at OAS
  Headquarters. The purpose of this meeting was to discuss the recently approved "Rule of Return of   
  Illegal Immigrants" by the European Parliament. The Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Peru, Colombia as
  well as the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Paraguay addressed the Permanent Council on this
  complex issue. The Permanent Representatives of the OAS Member States also expressed their views
  on the impact of this directive, followed by remarks from the Permanent Representatives of the
  European Union and Slovenia.   Ambassador John Bruton, Permanent Observer of the European Union to the OAS, addressed his
concern over the apprehension of the citizens of the Americas regarding the new directive. He noted
that the regulation does not criminalize migration, but rather seeks to help the EU better regulate both
illegal and legal migration. He concluded by underscoring the necessity for comprehensive immigration
reform in order to develop more appropriate safeguards against the exploitation of illegal immigrants.  Remarks by Ambassador John Bruton, Permanent Observer of the European Union to the OAS Press Releases:
   OAS Permanent Council to Discuss Immigration Law Passed by European Union
   Insulza Rejects European Measures against Immigrants
   La OEA decide enviar una misión de alto nivel a la Unión Europea para discutir implicancias de la
   nueva normativa migratoria (Español) Resolutions:
   OAS Action on the European Union's Returns Directive on Migration Issues (English)
   Acción de la OEA sobre la Directiva de Retorno de la Unión Europea en materia migratoria
   (Español)    Photo Gallery 
   

    June 25, 2008   On June 25, the OAS Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza, met with the Ambassador of Italy to the
  United States, Giovanni Castellaneta. The two leaders met to discuss areas of mutual interest between
  the OAS and Italy and ways in which the Organization and Government of Italy could strengthen its
  collaboration. Italy is one of the oldest Observers to the OAS, and has been accredited the status since
  May 17, 1972.  Photo Gallery

    June 24, 2008   The OAS Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza, presented to the Permanent Council on June 24,
  2008, the Eleventh Report of the Mission to Support the Peace Process in Colombia (MAPP/OAS). This
  report gives an assessment to the current situation in Colombia, provides recommendations and states
  its conclusion about the process thus far. The Secretary General, as well as Colombia's Permanent
  Representative to the OAS thanked Member States as well as the Permanent Observer countries who
  have helped finance the Mission, and expressed their strong desire to move ahead with the peace
  process.          Eleventh Quarterly Report of the Secretary General to the Permanent Council on the Mission to
   Support the Peace Process in Colombia (MAPP/OEA) (English)

    June 17, 2008   On June 17, the Government of Italy pledged its support to OAS projects in the areas of: Action
   Against Antipersonnel Mines and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. The total 282,000
  Euros will go to support humanitarian demining, education and technical equipment in the Cordillera
  del Condor (between Peru and Ecuador), Colombia, and Nicaragua; in addition, over 75,000 Euros will
  fund will be allocated to strengthening justice through the Inter-American Commission on Human
  Rights.   Press Release

    June 1, 2008   On June 1 and June 3, the Department of International Affairs of the Secretariat for External Relations
  will host the Dialogue between the Heads of Delegation, the OAS Secretary General and the Heads of
  Delegation of the Permanent Observer Countries at the XXXVIII Regular Session of the OAS General
  Assembly in Medellín, Colombia.    2008 Dialogue  June 1
   Draft Annotated Order of Business June 1 (English)
   Draft Orden del Día Anotado 1 de junio (Español)

  June 3
   Draft Annotated Order of Business June 3 (English)
   Draft Orden del Día Anotado 3 de junio (Español)
     Draft Information Bulletin (English)
   Draft Buletín Informativo (Español) 

    May 22, 2008   On May 22, 2008, the OAS Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza, welcome the Prime Minister of
  Aruba, Nelson Oduber to OAS Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Aruba, a country within the Kingdom
  of the Netherlands, is situated just off the coast of South America near Venezuela. Secretary General
  Insulza and Prime Minister Oduber used the opportunity to discuss developments in the Latin American
  region, in general, and more specifically updates with regard to the Colombia-Ecuador situation.
          Photo Gallery

    May 13, 2008   On May 13, 2008, Secretary General José Miguel Insulza; Assistant Secretary General Albert Ramdin;
  the Permanent Representative of Colombia to the OAS, Camilo Ospina; Director of the Secretariat for
  External Relations, Suzanne Laporte; and, Director of the Department of International Affairs, Irene
  Klinger, met with representatives from the Permanent Observer countries to discuss their role in the
  upcoming 38th General Assembly to be held in Medellín, Colombia from June 1-3. The Permanent
  Observers will take part in a dialogue with the Secretary General and Heads of Delegation of the OAS
  Member States on June 1, and are invited to attended various meetings and functions throughout the
  General Assembly.
          Photo Gallery

    May 13, 2008   On May 13, 2008, the Secretary General of the Organization of American States, José Miguel Insulza,
  met with the Permanent Observer of Russia to the OAS, Yuri V. Ushakov. The Russian Federation has
  been a Permanent Observer to the OAS since April 1, 1992.    Photo Gallery

    May 9, 2008   On May 9, 2008 Iceland was been granted the status of Permanent Observer to the Organization of
  American States, pursuant to General Assembly resolution AG/RES. 50 (I-O/71) and resolution
   CP/RES. 936 (1650/08) of the Permanent Council.  

  April 28, 2008   From April 28, OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza met with the Permanent Observer of
  Denmark to the OAS, Friis Arne Peterson to discuss ongoing cooperation between the Organization and
  the Observer country.    Photo Gallery

  June 1, 2008   From June 3-5, Heads of Delegation from the OAS Member States will participate in the XXXVIII
  Regular Session of the OAS General Assembly being held in Medellín, Colombia. On June 1, a dialogue
  will take place between the Heads of Delegation, the OAS Secretary General and the Heads of
  Delegation of the Permanent Observer countries. More information will be made available in the
  coming weeks. The dialogue will revolve around the topic of this year's General Assembly: "Youth and
  Democratic Values."
 

  March 25, 2008   On March 25, OAS Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza forwarded to the Permanent Council for its
  approval the request of His Excellency Ingibjorg Solrun Gisladottir, Minister for Foreign Affairs of
  Iceland, to be granted the status of Permanent Observer to the Organization of American States. For
  its part, Iceland's foreign policy objectives fully support the efforts of the OAS in strengthening
  cooperation on democratic values, promoting human rights, fostering the environment and sustainable
development, as well as advancing fair trade and confronting shared problems such as poverty,
terrorism and corruption.
 

  March 20, 2008   On March 20, OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza met with the Permanent Observer of
  Norway, Wegger Chr. Strommen.   Photo Gallery        

  March 17, 2008   The OAS hosts Ministers of Foreign Affairs for Meeting of Consultations  On March 5, the OAS Permanent Missions and some Permanent Observers met to discuss the situation
  between Colombia and Ecuador that took place on March 1, 2008. On March 17, the Missions and
  Observers reconvened to receive the report of the report of the Commission headed by the Secretary
  General regarding these events.    Press Advisory
   Press Release
   Permanent Council Resolution RC.25/REST.1/08: Resolution of the Twenty-Fifth Meeting of  
   Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs
   Resolución de la Vigésimo Quinta Reunión de Consulta de Ministros de Relaciones Exteriores (Spanish)
   Report of the OAS Commission that Visited Ecuador and Colombia

  March 5, 2008   The Permanent Observers participate in the Special Meeting to treat the Situation
  between Colombia and Ecuador   On March 5, the Permanent Observers participated along with delegations from the OAS Member
   States in the Special Meeting convened by the OAS Permanent Council seeking to resolve the
  situation between Colombia and Ecuador that took place on March 1, 2008. The Permanent Observers
  engaged in dialogue with the OAS representatives, actively seeking to help the OAS delegations seek
  a resolution to this matter.    Press Release
   Permanent Council Resolution 930 (1632/08): Convocation of the Meeting of Consultation of Ministers
   of Foreign Affairs and Appointment of a Commission
   Videos from the Special Meeting

  March 7, 2008    Statement by the Government of Morocco at the Eighth Regular Session of the Inter-
  American Committee Against Terrorism   Statement

  February 19, 2008   On February 19, OAS Assistant Secretary General Albert Ramdin met with Gerhard Enver
Schrömbgens, Director for Latin American and Caribbean in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Germany.    Photo Gallery

       February 14, 2008   On February 14, OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza and Dante Caputo, Undersecretary for
  Political Affairs, met with French Foreign and European Affairs Minister, Bernard Koucher, and Foreign
  Affairs and Human Rights Secretary, Rama Yade, in Paris to discuss issues pertaining to the Americas.
  On the agenda for the meeting included discussions regarding the ongoing process of a humanitarian
  agreement with the FARC, the situation in Haiti, human rights and the efforts to combat drug
  trafficking.

   Press Release (from French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs)

February 4, 2008

Breakfast between the Secretary General and Permanent Observers:" Assessing the Americas"

On February 4, OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza met with more than 40 representatives from the Permanent Observer countries in a breakfast organized by the Department of International Affairs. The breakfast was an opportunity for the Secretary General to assess the situation in the Americas as well as express gratitude on behalf of the Organization of American States to the Permanent Observer countries for their continued support to OAS programs. The Secretary General spoke at the breakfast with the underlying theme of continued cooperation between the Permanent Observers and the OAS. He gave an overview of the situation in the Americas and addressed issues of economic growth and challenges affecting the region. Additionally, the Secretary General spoke of poverty and inequality, organized crime, drugs and human trafficking, political change, issues regarding regional integration, free markets and constitutional reforms of Bolivia and Ecuador. The breakfast also provided a forum for open dialogue between the Secretary General and the participating representatives on concerns and issues impacting the hemisphere. Invitation
Fact Sheet on Permanent Observer Contributions
Press Release Spanish- English
Photo Gallery
  

January 22, 2008   On January 22, OAS Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza received Ferenc Somogyi, Permanent
Observer of Hungary to the OAS.  Photo Gallery