Foreign Affairs Minister Zbigniew Rau, as Chairman-in-Office of the OSCE, has today concluded his first official visit to Moscow.

On 15 February, Zbigniew Rau, Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs and OSCE Chairman-in-Office, will travel to Moscow. The main point on the agenda will be a meeting with Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov.

It is our pleasure to announce that Poland’s Ambassador to the Netherlands, Prof. Marcin Czepelak, has been elected to a five-year term as the new Secretary-General of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague.

OSCE Chairman-in-Office and Foreign Affairs Minister Zbigniew Rau has today concluded his first official visit to Ukraine since Poland’s OSCE Chairmanship takeover. He highlighted the necessity of undertaking actions to solve the crisis in and around that country in line with both international law and the principles and obligations of the OSCE.

Zbigniew Rau, Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs and OSCE Chairman-in-Office, will travel to Ukraine today on what will be his first official visit to the country.

Deputy Minister Paweł Jabłoński represented Poland at the Joint Conference of Foreign Ministers and Health Ministers organised in Lyon by the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union and devoted to EU member states’ support to low- and middle-income countries.

Deputy Minister Marcin Przydacz joined a phone conversation organised by US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman with the participation of NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană, Secretary General of the European External Action Service Stefano Sannino and OSCE Secretary General Helga Schmid.

On 8 February, Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau as Chairman-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) inaugurated Poland’s Renewed European Security Dialogue initiative. Its launch, along with U.S.-Russia bilateral talks and dialogue at the NATO-Russia Council, marks an important step intended to defuse the currently tense security situation and work out ways to prevent similar ones in the future.

- Warsaw wishes to develop good bilateral relations with the authorities in Muscat, and also to seek new grounds for  mutually beneficial cooperation. We recognize its great, but still not fully exploited potential, especially in the economic dimension, and also on international fora – said Deputy Minister Paweł Jabłoński during  todays' consultations.

Today, the chief of Polish diplomacy opened the OSCE conference on combatting anti-Semitism. In his address, Minister Rau pointed out that all forms of anti-Semitism should be met with a firm response.