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CPS's recently graduated Dr Benjamin Schaller is the overall winner of the OSCE-IFSH Essay Competition

The OSCE’s participating States have created the most advanced regime for conventional arms control, disarmament and confidence-and security-building measures (CSBMs) worldwide.

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Portrettbilde av Trunova, Ekaterina
Trunova, Ekaterina etr005@post.uit.no Førstekonsulent
Published: 09.12.20 13:53 Updated: 11.02.21 09:03
Law & order Society

https://www.osce.org/stories/fresh-perspectives-on-conventional-arms-control-in-Europe

They are designed to encourage greater openness and transparency to increase military security and stability in the Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian areas, helping States to understand each other’s intentions in the military sphere.

In recent years, there have been discussions on how these frameworks could be better implemented and modernized to reduce risks and reflect better the current politico-military environment.

In March 2020, the OSCE and the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy at the University of Hamburg, together with the Moscow State Institute for International Relations (MGIMO), the Geneva Centre for Security Policy and the Vienna Centre for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, launched a competition, calling on students and young professionals to submit their ideas.

The entrants had to be nationals of OSCE participating States and Partners for Co-operation, no older than 35 years of age, and women were especially encouraged to apply.

There were 96 entries from participants in 36 OSCE participating States.

Benjamin Schaller (Germany, Arctic University of Norway in Tromsø) was selected by the jury as the overall winner of the competition. 

He said he first became interested in the work of the OSCE through an internship with the division for conventional arms control and CSBMs at the German Federal Foreign Office. Since then he has had a key interest in the OSCE and in arms control and CSBMs.

Schaller’s essay reflected upon the untapped potential of a stronger multilateral approach to verification in European arms control. He discussed the main benefits of a multilateral approach to verification, and identified lessons-learned from existing approaches to multilateral arms control verification under the authority of some international organizations. He presented and discussed a number of conceptual ideas for a stronger role of the OSCE in European arms control. In particular, his essay focused on the possibilities, benefits, and requirements for the OSCE to deploy fact-finding missions and conduct investigations on behalf of OSCE participating States in times of increased political tensions and distrust. His essay concluded with a number of concrete policy proposals and recommendations on how to strengthen the OSCE’s role in European arms control.

Schaller hopes to inspire and generate interest among young people in the topics of disarmament, arms control, and military confidence-building, areas which he feels are in urgent need of young voices and fresh ideas.

Trunova, Ekaterina etr005@post.uit.no Førstekonsulent
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