OSCE chairmanship "great responsibility"

OSCE chairmanship "great responsibility"

"The OSCE mandate aims to ensure peace and respect for standards such as the freedom of the media and human rights, and the chair has to take care of this, starting from their own example," the Norwegian foreign minister said.

Asked whether Serbia "will have to choose between Brussels and Moscow when it comes to the crisis in Ukraine," Brende said that it was "crystal clear that Serbia respects Ukraine's territorial integrity."

This is highly appreciated in Brussels, the Norwegian minister said.

Asked to voice his opinion on the future of the South Stream pipeline project in the context of the crisis in Ukraine, Brende said that Norway is not an EU member is not participating in the investments "although it is very close to the EU" - which is why he cannot comment on the matter.

Asked if Norway as an energy force is preparing some measures to help EU member countries to reduce their reliance on Russia's gas, Brende said that his country has been supplying the EU with 23 percent of its total gas supplies.

"In the short-run, we can up this figure by 10-15 percent, but this cannot be a permanent measure because of the lack of capacities," the Norwegian foreign minister said.