26/04/2023 | 20:01:11 (Undelivered speech, Rules of Procedure Art. 31.2) Distinguished members of the Assembly, As you are aware, on February 6, 2023, two earthquakes of magnitudes 7.7 and 7.6 on the Richter scale struck the southeastern region of Türkiye. To date, over 27,000 aftershocks have been recorded in the area. I must stress that this was the worst natural disaster to hit a Council of Europe member state in the last 100 years, as highlighted by Mr. Simon Moutquin’s report on natural disasters. The... 13/10/2022 | 12:22:01 Thank you, Madam and Mr President, Ladies and gentlement, I would like to start by thanking the rapporteur for this extremely important report. Since the beginning of the Russian aggression back in early February, all of us have witnessed so many new challenges affecting Europe and, indeed, the whole world: we find ourselves facing an energy crisis, a security crisis, a food crisis and many more crises. The food crisis we are now facing has had a profound impact on the whole world, in... 12/10/2022 | 11:48:40 Thank you, Mister President. Dear Colleagues, First of all, I would like to emphasise that we must avoid double standards. The report we are discussing is very critical of Türkiye. On the other hand, we are witnessing legally baseless measures against Russian civilians in Europe due to the Russian attack on Ukraine which we all condemn. For example, the conductor Valery Gergiev fired by the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra and his concerts cancelled in Europe. Whatever the circumstances, we are... 11/10/2022 | 20:33:54 (Undelivered speech, Rules of Procedure Art. 31.2) Dear President, Dear Colleagues, I would like to start thanking the rapporteur for his excellent contribution to the debate on the freedom of movement. Sadly, Schengen system, which was initially designed to flourish freedom of movement, has now started to erect barriers to the third country nationals because it was instrumentalised by some EU member States as a politically motivated sanction. Especially, we see the ramifications of some... 23/06/2022 | 16:04:49 Thank you, Miste President. Dear Colleagues, I am pleased that the Assembly has immediately placed this crucial issue of asylum on its agenda. In April, the British authorities announced that illegally arrived migrants would be relocated to Rwanda, claiming that relocation would facilitate safe and legal asylum channels and that Rwanda is able to accommodate tens of thousands of people. We believe that this practice contradicts the right to asylum. There is a serious risk that the principle... 22/06/2022 | 16:54:03 Thank you, Mister President. Dear Colleagues, I would like to thank the rapporteur for his brilliant work on this sensitive but largely ignored subject. This Assembly has adopted several reports on migrant and refugee children and has worked on different aspects of the issue in recent years. The current Russian aggression against Ukraine has once again revealed that children are among the most vulnerable groups in migration and need immediate care and protection. Contrary to our previous... 27/04/2022 | 11:53:40 Thank you, Mister President. Dear Colleagues, One of the important aspects of this war, which we are witnessing in other crises, is the humanitarian consequences. Currently, the world is experiencing the greatest migratory mobility after the Second World War. One of the places where this mobility continues at the highest level in recent times is undoubtedly Ukraine. As a result of this mobility, a total of 5 million Ukrainians, at least half of whom are children, have become refugees... 15/03/2022 | 12:42:46 Madam President, Dear colleagues, I would like to thank the Council of Europe and this Assembly for holding this special session and for acting in a timely manner against the military operation of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, as well as Ms Ingjerd SCHOU for this comprehensive report. As a member of the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons and rapporteur on missing migrant and refugee children in Europe, I would like to draw your attention to the children affected... 24/01/2022 | 19:18:07 Good evening, dear President, dear colleagues, I would like to thank the rapporteur for his work on this extremely important issue, the new European Pact on Migration and Asylum, which will replace the current EU migration regime. Unfortunately, we have seen so many cases of human rights violations against asylum seekers and refugees in recent years. There have been so many horrific moments, including refoulements in the Mediterranean and, on land, attacks on refugees, seizure of their... 29/09/2021 | 18:09:15 Thank you, Mr President. Dear colleagues, I would like to thank all the rapporteurs for their important contribution to the debate on climate change and its adverse effects on the right to a safe, healthy and sustainable environment. Although our Assembly has addressed the issue before, we tend to overlook the impact of climate on migration. Political conflicts, civil wars and persecution have been identified as the main reasons for migration and forced displacement. However, climate change...