President
At each Annual Session, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly elects a President who acts as the highest representative of the Assembly and presides over the meetings of the Assembly. The President is elected for one year and can be re-elected for an additional one-year term.
Petros Efthymiou, a member of the Greek Parliament, was elected President of the Assembly at the 2010 Annual Session in Oslo and re-elected at the 2011 Annual Session in Belgrade. He had previously served as Vice-President of the Assembly, and as Chair and Vice-Chair of the Second General Committee.
Click here to see recent presidential visits and activities.
In his address to the Assembly upon being elected, Mr. Efthymiou laid out two key priorities of his presidency: one, increasing the effectiveness of the PA’s work, “with a balanced approach to our agenda and a policy of equality towards all participating members,” and two, ensuring “a stronger role for the PA itself, with the enhancement of its position, both within the OSCE and in relation to our governments and other international organizations.”
Throughout his presidency, he has continued to advocate on behalf of the OSCE and the Assembly's role within the Organization. Speaking at the 2010 OSCE Summit in Astana, the President said the OSCE is facing an “identity crisis." He pointed to a lack of mutual trust that “prevents our collective decisions and undermines our ability to deal with the regular workload of the Organization.”
In order to develop trust in the Organization, the Permanent Council needs to open its meetings to the press and the public and executive structures should make better use of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, he said.
A former Minister of Education and Religious Affairs, Mr. Efthymiou has also had a long and distinguished career in both print and broadcast journalism. He is a founding member of the Greek Socialist Party (PASOK), and has been a member of the Greek Parliament since 2004. Mr. Efthymiou has also served as a Member of the European Parliament.