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104 | Mission NotesOSCE Office in BakuAuthorization Date 16 November 1999 (PCDEC/318)Start Date July 2000Head of Mission Ambassador Bilge Cankorel(Turkey)Budget$3.7 million(1 January 2010-31December 2010)Strength as of 1 International Staff: 11August 2010 Local Staff: 27For detailed mission information see p. 265OSCE Office in YerevanA Moldovan border guard and friend.EUBAMAuthorization Date 22 July 1999 (PC.DEC/314)Start Date February 2000Head of Mission Ambassador Sergey Kapinos(Russian Federation)Budget$3.9 million(1 January 2010-31December 2010)Strength as of 1 International Staff: 21August 2010 Local Staff: 74For detailed mission information see p. 273The frontline has become increasinglyunstable in 2010, with a series of clashes resultingin fatalities for both sides. The number of incidentsspiked in August and September, and the co-chairsof the Minsk Group (France, Russia and the US)appealed for calm. Russia has made sustained diplomaticefforts to handle the crisis this year, hostingthe Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers forbilateral talks in June. Nonetheless, t<strong>here</strong> is a riskthat the conflict may deteriorate, leaving the MinskProcess’s future in question.The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is also on theagenda of the European Union’s Special Representative(EUSR) for the South Caucasus, currentlyPeter Semneby of Sweden. The EUSR’s involvementin the conflict is complicated by the fact thatthe EU is not formally represented in the MinskGroup but Ambassador Semneby (who took uphis post in 2006) has attempted to ease tensions.To assist him, the EU appointed political advisersto the EUSR based in Yerevan and Baku in 2007.In 2010, the EUSR publicly underlined concernsabout the escalating conflict in parallel with theMinsk Group.In spite of this engagement on Nagorno-Karabakh, the role of the EUSR for the SouthCaucasus – originally created in 2003 – was moreclosely associated with Georgian affairs beforethe 2008 war. Ambassador Semneby’s predecessorHeidi Talvitie played a mediating role in the peacefulre-entry of the breakaway region of Ajara intoGeorgia in 2004. In 2005, the EU deployed a oneyearjustice mission to Georgia and also considereddeploying a border monitoring mission to replace aprevious OSCE monitoring operation.Apparently concerned by Russian objectionsto the deployment of a full-scale EU mission,the EU instead created a Border Support Team(BST) answering to the EUSR. Launched in 2006,the BST consists of six international staff and threeGeorgian experts, that work closely with the nationalauthorities on improving border management. Evenprior to the 2008 war, the BST could not operate inAbkhazia and South Ossetia.