On 12 May 2022, Kosovo*Note applied for membership to the Council of Europe.
According to Appendix I Statutory Resolution (51)30 section A. "Admission of new members" of the Statute: “The Committee of Ministers, before inviting a State to become a Member or Associate Member of the Council of Europe [...] shall first consult the Consultative (Parliamentary) Assembly in accordance with existing practice.”
When Albania applied for membership on 4 May 1992, the Committee of Ministers referred this application shortly after, on 21 May 1992, to the Parliamentary Assembly for an opinion. When the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia applied for membership on 9 November 2000, within less than three weeks, on 22 November 2000, the Committee of Ministers once again asked the Parliamentary Assembly to give an opinion.
Since Kosovo applied for membership on 12 May 2022, the Committee of Ministers has not asked the Parliamentary Assembly to give an opinion and assess whether the criteria for membership are met.
Mr Abraham
To ask the Committee of Ministers:
When is the Committee of Ministers planning to refer the application for membership of Kosovo to the Parliamentary Assembly and request members of the Parliamentary Assembly to give their opinion on this important matter?