Thank you Chair.
As a nation under constant attack, Ukraine has demonstrated extraordinary resilience, innovation and courage. It has strengthened partnerships across Europe and beyond, becoming a leader in defence innovation.
Our relationship with Ukraine is no longer one-way. It is a two-way street. Ukraine is teaching Europe about modern warfare. About resilience under fire. About innovation at speed. About what it takes to defend a country when every rule has been broken.
Our broad military and civilian support to Ukraine is not charity. It is partnership. It is investment in shared security.
Russia’s decision to launch its full-scale invasion of Ukraine was one of the biggest strategic mistakes of the 21st century. It was also a blatant violation of international law and the very principles upon which the OSCE was founded.
Russia bears full responsibility for the consequences of its escalatory behavior, its continued military actions, and for the crisis it has caused across the OSCE area. Its actions violate every commitment in the Helsinki Final Act and the OSCE Code of Conduct.
But condemnation alone is not a strategy.
We must also prepare. The security environment we face is not the one our instruments were built for. We operate in what is honestly described as a zero-trust environment.
The lines between peace and crisis and war are less clear than at any point since 1945.
As Chair of the Structured Dialogue, we have moved the work from confidence-building toward risk management. We have mapped risk perceptions. Commissioned expert analysis on military exercises and verification technology. Tested how existing tools function under conditions of deep mistrust.
And we have asked hard questions about whether our instruments need updating or whether we simply lack the will to use them.
Five findings guide our work.
1. Arms control matters most when trust is low and stakes are high.
2. The focus is shifting. Europe is facing an arms race. Arms control is no longer about limitation but risk management. From verifying numbers to managing danger.
3. Our concept of security must widen. The classical toolbox counted tanks and troops. Today we must also address what moves below the threshold. Hybrid. Cyber. Grey zone.
4. Technology changes both sides of the equation. It creates new threats. And it gives us new ways to observe and verify. But more data does not mean better decisions.
And finally, we should be honest about what arms control can do. It has never stopped a war that someone chose to fight. Its value is more modest - and still essential. To prevent the wars no one intended to start or fight.
Russian aggression has shattered security in our region. That it ends, is our priority. Once it ends, we must be prepared.
The OSCE has the tools. It has the mandate. It will need the will to match.
I thank you.