A spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department of Press and Information told RIA Novosti on Saturday that the Russian side focused the participants' attention on the importance of enhancing efficiency of the CIS countries' interaction for developing well-balanced and coordinated approaches to "fundamental aspects of the OSCE performance".
Among other things, the Russian Foreign Ministry's statement points out, the participants emphasized the need for continued joint efforts "to further the ongoing OSCE institutional reform in the interests of enhancing its efficiency and adjusting the Organization's current functional and geographical disbalances" displayed in the disproportional concentration of OSCE field activities in the post-Soviet territories and "excessive focus on humanitarian issues to the detriment of the political, military and economic dimensions of the Organization".
The participants also discussed various issues pertaining to the concept of security and management of the OSCE borders and its "external dimension". In addition, they considered a number of OSCE budget-related financial issues, including the planned overhaul of the Organization's budget-building mechanisms - proportional contributions to the OSCE budget shall be readjusted before the end of the year.
The participants in the meeting agreed to continue consultations on the most vital aspects of their cooperation in the context of due preparation for the next OSCE ministerial session scheduled for December 6-7, 2004 in Sofia.
The Russian Foreign Ministry at the consultative meeting was represented by Anvar Azimov, Deputy Director of the European Cooperation Department.
