Interconnections between the Council of Europe and the European Political Community
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Assembly
debate on 10 April 2025 (17th sitting) (see Doc. 16128, report of the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy,
rapporteur: Mr Zsolt Németh). Text adopted
by the Assembly on 10 April 2025 (17th sitting).
1. Following a proposal made by the
President of the French Republic on 9 May 2022 at the closing ceremony
of the Conference on the Future of Europe, leaders of the European
Union agreed at the European Council meeting in June 2022 to launch
the European Political Community, with the aim of bringing together European
Union and non-European Union countries on the European continent.
The ambition was to foster political dialogue and co-operation among
leaders to address issues of common interest to strengthen the security,
stability and prosperity of the European continent.
2. The launch of the European Political Community demonstrated
the willingness of European Union leaders to rapidly react and adapt
the multilateral architecture of Europe to a deeply challenging
geopolitical environment, marked, in particular, by the full-scale
war of aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
3. So far, five summits – one every six months – have been held,
hosted alternately by the European Union member State holding the
rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union and a non-European
Union country. Since the inaugural summit in Prague in October 2022,
summits held in the Republic of Moldova, Spain, the United Kingdom
and Hungary have focused on peace, prosperity, security, energy
resilience, connectivity and, most recently, democracy and migration.
4. The non-institutionalised and flexible nature of the European
Political Community has created unique possibilities for dialogue
that would otherwise not be possible in other frameworks. The Parliamentary Assembly
notes that the European Political Community, a platform for political
co-ordination, does not replace any existing organisation, structure
or process, nor does it seek to create new ones. The Assembly also
notes that the European Political Community has no legal basis establishing
a formal membership. It underlines that the European Political Community
has remained an informal intergovernmental platform for political
dialogue between European leaders from European Union member States
and non-European Union member States, in the presence of European
Union institutions. Operational work is carried out by the host
country and the General Secretariat of the Council of the European
Union, while continuity between European Political Community summits
of European leaders is ensured by the President of the European
Council.
5. The Assembly welcomes the participation of the Council of
Europe in the last two summits of the European Political Community
in Oxfordshire and Budapest. To ensure synergies and complementarity between
the European Political Community and the Council of Europe, a pan-European
political community of 46 member States based on a treaty (Statute
of the Council of Europe, ETS No. 1), the Assembly encourages future
host countries to maintain this invitation to the Organisation.
6. As the European Political Community is not meant to replace
the European Union’s neighbourhood and enlargement policies, it
adds another circle to the already existing variable geometry of
European integration. In that respect, the European Political Community
has yet to prove that it can contribute to the further alignment of
non-European Union countries.
7. Although the nature and objectives of the Council of Europe
and the European Political Community are not the same, the question
of the links between the new European Political Community and the
long-standing Europe-wide political activity of the Council of Europe
was raised from the outset. Since then, the geographical scope of
participation in the European Political Community has come closer
to that of the Council of Europe member States, and the wider range
of issues addressed by the European Political Community has highlighted the
need to seek co-operation, in line with the Reykjavik Declaration.
In addition, the support of the Council of Europe to Ukraine and
its efforts to hold the Russian Federation accountable for its war
of aggression against Ukraine make the Organisation a key partner
of the European Political Community.
8. In light of these considerations, the Assembly:
8.1 recalls that the Heads of State
and Government of the Council of Europe met at their 4th Summit in
Reykjavik on 16 and 17 May 2023 to stand united against Russia’s
war of aggression against Ukraine and to give further priority and
direction to the work of the Council of Europe. They reiterated
the pan-European role of the Council of Europe and confirmed that
it is uniquely placed to bring together, on an equal footing, all
the countries of Europe to protect democratic security on the continent
and to counter the undermining of human rights, democracy and the
rule of law;
8.2 stresses that the Council of Europe is a pan-European
political community of 46 member States;
8.3 believes that, at this pivotal moment for Europe, the
Council of Europe must be an ever stronger and more resilient pillar
of multilateralism. The Council of Europe should play a proactive
role in the discussions related to the European political architecture.
It should also maintain its leading intergovernmental role in all
matters relating to human rights, democracy and the rule of law
in Europe, and its leading responsibility for the functioning of
its convention system.
9. Furthermore, in this rapidly shifting geopolitical landscape,
where the rules-based international order faces severe challenges,
the Assembly believes that European leaders should bring the European
Political Community and the Council of Europe closer together and,
in line with the Reykjavik Declaration, set an example of effective
and dynamic multilateralism that promotes shared values and underpins
security and stability in Europe.
10. Equally, the Assembly considers that the unprecedented challenges
currently facing Europe call for ever closer co-operation between
the Council of Europe and the European Union. As reaffirmed in the
Reykjavik Declaration, “the European Union is the main institutional
partner of the Council of Europe in political, legal, and financial
terms”. The Council of Europe should further strengthen its strategic
partnership with the European Union.
11. The Assembly also recalls the invaluable role of the Council
of Europe in the European Union enlargement process. In this context,
the Council of Europe, as the benchmark for human rights, the rule
of law and democracy in Europe, should increase its support to enhance
the level of preparedness of candidate and potential candidate countries
for European Union accession.
12. Consequently, as regards relations between the Council of
Europe and the European Political Community, the Assembly calls
on Council of Europe member States, in particular European Political Community
host countries and, when relevant, European Union leaders to:
12.1 ensure synergies and co-ordination
between the European Political Community and the Council of Europe,
notably by ensuring systematic participation of the Council of Europe
in European Political Community summits;
12.2 develop, during European Political Community summits,
a format for dialogue on strategic issues, with the Council of Europe,
on matters falling under its mandate;
12.3 make full use of the participation of the Council of Europe
in European Political Community summits for additional high-level
dialogue;
12.4 develop contact points through senior officials in the
Council of Europe Secretariat in Strasbourg, in close co-operation
with the Council of Europe Liaison Office in Brussels, and in the
General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union;
12.5 make full use of Council of Europe instruments and work,
notably on democracy through the New Democratic Pact for Europe
under preparation;
12.6 consider developing a joint declaration to ensure complementarity
of respective activities and develop further synergies.
13. Regarding the role of the Council of Europe, the Assembly
calls on the Council of Europe member States to:
13.1 strengthen the position of the
Council of Europe as the leading intergovernmental organisation
in Europe promoting and safeguarding human rights, democracy and
the rule of law, in the evolving European and global multilateral
architecture as they committed to in Reykjavik;
13.2 further develop the role of the Council of Europe as a
resilient and robust political community and a platform for strategic
and political dialogue, diplomacy and multilateralism, where member
States can come together to address shared challenges and pursue
common goals, by:
13.2.1 enhancing the political dimension
of its work and bodies;
13.2.2 ensuring efficient co-ordination of functions and responsibilities
with other institutions and fora within the multilateral architecture;
13.2.3 convening summits of heads of State and government on
a more regular basis.
13.3 support the further development of Council of Europe work
in the area of democratic security and democratic resilience.
14. Finally, the Assembly resolves to continue to act as a dynamic
platform for pan-European political dialogue and parliamentary diplomacy.
