INTERNATIONAL: Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau has warned Europe is closer to war than it has been at any time in the last 30 years, on Thursday at the launch of his country's year-long chairmanship of the region's largest security organization.

Without naming Russia in his address to envoys from the 57 members of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau mentioned there were tensions in Ukraine, Georgia, Armenia and Moldova, all countries with active or frozen conflicts, which Russia is alleged to be a party.

The Polish Foreign Minister said the latest developments in Kazakhstan gave the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe serious reasons for concerns.

He further said that the risk of war in the OSCE area is now greater than ever before in the last 30 years. For several weeks OSCE have been faced with the prospect of a major military escalation in Eastern Europe.