The OSCE was established in 1972 as the Conference for Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE) to provide a multilateral forum for discussion, debate and negotiation. It drew up the Helsinki Final Act on East-West relations in 1975. The CSCE was extended under the Helsinki Document to become an organisation with permanent institutions. In December 1994, the summit conference adopted the new name of Organisation to express the changed political role and strengthened secretariat.
There are 54 members, including all the recognised states of Europe, Canada, the United States and all the former Soviet republics. The OSCE aims to strengthen democracy and the pursuit of human rights and at the same time avoid conflicts and settle disputes between participating states by peaceful means. To this end it undertakes fact-finding and conciliation missions. Peace-keeping missions are only undertaken if all sides concerned agree to this and if there is a ceasefire in place.
The Dayton Peace agreements of December 1995 which ended the Bosnian conflict made provision for OSCE supervision of elections, its monitoring of human rights and the drafting of arms control agreements.
The OSCE has also intervened in the 1993 Armenia/Azer baijan dispute over the Nagorny-Karabakh region, in the war between Chechen separatists and Russia (1994-96) and in the dispute between Greece and the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia. It played a prominent role in bringing the crisis in Albania in 1997 to a swift and satisfactory end. Missions have also been sent to, Estonia, Georgia, Latvia, Moldova, Tajikistan, Kosovo and Vojvodina. Poland takes over the presidency on January 1st.