What did the countries pledge to do at the Helsinki accords?

Principles Guiding Relations Between Participating States

I. Sovereign equality, respect for the rights inherent in sovereignty

II. Refraining from threat or use of force

III. Inviolability of frontiers

IV. Territorial integrity of States

V. Peaceful settlement of disputes

VI. Non-intervention in internal affairs

VII. Respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief

VIII. Equal rights and self-determination of peoples

IX. Co-operation among States

X. Fulfilment in good faith of obligations under international law

Origin of the Helsinki Accords

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) had its origin in the early s when the Soviet Union first proposed the creation of an all-European security conference. In the mid-s the Warsaw Pact renewed calls for such a conference. In May , the Government of Finland sent a memorandum to all European countries, the United States and Canada, offering Helsinki as a conference venue. Beginning in November , representatives from the original nations met for nearly three years to work out the arrangements and the framework for the conference, concluding their work in July .

On August , , the leaders of the original participating States gathered in Helsinki and signed the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe. Also known as the Helsinki Accords, the Final Act is not a treaty, but rather a politically binding agreement consisting of three main sections informally known as “baskets,” adopted on the basis of consensus. This comprehensive Act contains a broad range of measures designed to enhance security and cooperation in the region extending from Vancouver to Vladivostok.

Basket I contains a Declaration of Principles Guiding Relations between participating States, including the all-important Principle VII on human rights and fundamental freedoms. It also includes a section on confidence-building measures and other aspects of security and disarmament aimed at increasing military transparency.

Basket II covers economic, scientific, technological and environmental cooperation, as well as migrant labor, vocational training and the promotion of tourism.

Basket III is devoted to cooperation in humanitarian and other fields: freer movement of people; human contacts, including family reunification and visits; freedom of information, including working conditions for journalists; and cultural and educational exchanges. Principle VII and Basket III together have come to be known as “The Human Dimension.”

Since , the number of countries signing the Helsinki Accords has expanded to , reflecting changes such as the breakup of the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia.

Institutionalization of the Conference in the early s led to its transformation to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, effective January .

Source(s): http://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHels…