35 Nations Agree on Program for Security Emergencies

The foreign ministers of 35 European and North American nations agreed here Thursday to set up a new emergency procedure that will let a handful of members call a meeting to consider situations that might endanger peace.

Until now, the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) could not act to debate so-called emergency situations without a consensus agreement of all its members.

The CSCE, which embraces every European nation, including the Soviet Union, as well as the United States and Canada, also designated the Conflict Prevention Center in Vienna as the agency to handle lesser disputes among its members.

In a final statement, winding up their two-day meeting, the foreign ministers approved creation of a “hot line,” linking member capitals with the new Vienna center.

The statement also pledged support for the new democracies of Eastern Europe in their “transition towards a market economy.”

Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher of host-nation Germany said the “great expectations” for the conference have been realized and added: “We are about to build a Pan-European order.”

The accord for dealing with emergencies involved lengthy negotiations that kept officials up until 3 a.m., with the Soviet Union warning against interference in a nation’s internal affairs. The agreement provides that as soon as 12 members agree with any member’s petition that an “emergency” is “endangering peace, security or stability,” a meeting will be held under the auspices of the CSCE secretariat in Prague.