24/06/2025 | 11:53:33 Esteemed colleagues, Today, we stand resolute in our unwavering support for Ukraine and our Ukrainian brothers and sisters. We find ourselves at a critical moment, one that will not only shape the future of Ukraine, but it will also test the very principles that reinforce the core values of this Assembly, international law and our collective humanity. We have witnessed atrocious acts such as indiscriminate attacks on civilians, torture and execution of prisoners of war, unlawful detentions... 10/04/2025 | 18:16:18 It's an honour for me to address you on behalf of my group on the highly topical subject of Council of Europe, Latin American Relations, and our joint wish to see them strengthened further. In doing so, we have a long shared history on which we build, as our rapporteur points out in his report. To this should be added our linguistically and culturally connected two countries, in the form of Spanish and Portuguese, which never ceases to add dynamism and context across the Atlantic. We... 09/04/2025 | 20:07:03 (Undelivered speech, Rules of Procedure Art. 31.2) Madam President I wish to begin by extending my heartfelt gratitude to the Ukrainian delegation present here in the Council of Europe. Your dedication, cooperation, and contributions to humanity are invaluable. You embody the spirit of resilience and collaboration that serves as a beacon of hope for us all. Thank you for your unwavering commitment and the sacrifices you have made, which indeed remind us of the strength found in unity and... 09/04/2025 | 16:56:59 Mister President, I’m glad that our Assembly decided to hold this special debate on the recent worrying developments in Türkiye. They involve the arrest of Mr Ekrem İMAMOĞLU and many of his followers as well as independent journalists, and on the implications that these arrests may have for Turkish democracy. To date the accusations by the judiciary against the popular mayor of Istanbul have been utterly vague, talking about alleged corruption and contacts with Kurdish politicians. But the... 09/04/2025 | 10:32:47 Thank you, Mister President. Following a review of the report presented, I am reminded of the timeless proverb "trust but verify", which gained prominence during the Cold War disarmament dialogues. This phrase encapsulates a fundamental principle that is particularly relevant to our discussion today. Our Assembly has evolved significantly from a position of naive trust to one characterised by diligent verification and accountability. This transformation was necessitated by serious corruption... 08/04/2025 | 10:27:40 Thank you, Madam President. The report in front of us underscores the grave threats posed by authoritarian Russia to our European region. This report is critical to our fight for democratic values and other core values of this organisation, especially combating Russia's relentless assault on our freedoms, which looks an awful lot like what we saw during the Cold War. Russia employs cyberattacks, disinformation, and political subversion to destabilise us. Their toolkit of aggression includes... 30/01/2025 | 18:06:45 Mister President, Upon examining our rapporteur Ms Valentina GRIPPO's report titled “Regulating content moderation on social media to safeguard freedom of expression,” I am struck by the challenges faced in managing digital platforms compared to traditional newspapers. In the world of print, journalists produce articles based on specific assignments from an editor, who reviews and publishes these pieces in a straightforward and well-defined process. This structured approach seems relatively... 29/01/2025 | 19:57:08 (Undelivered speech, Rules of Procedure Art. 31.2) Mister President, Today I wish to address what I view as a critical oversimplification of the complex challenges posed by demographic ageing in Europe. It is with great interest that I have read the report prepared by our Rapporteur Ms. Odamur, which discusses the potential of immigration to help address the challenges of an ageing population in Europe alongside other economic considerations. However, I must express my concerns regarding... 29/01/2025 | 10:24:21 Thank you, Madam President, To my mind, there are two fundamental elements in our lives, there is time, which forms our history as communities and societies, and there is physical space, underlying geography, forming as it does the "stage", as it were, where events, or history, is constantly being played out. This is why history, like geography, were considered such important school subjects for an earlier generation, especially after two devastating World Wars. The thought was that, even... 28/01/2025 | 20:01:41 (Undelivered speech, Rules of Procedure Art. 31.2) Madam President, Our rapporteur Mr Andrea Orlando in his highly interesting report raises the question of whether – and if so how seriously – mercenaries and private military companies around the world pose a threat to democracy, human rights and the rule of law. I would say there is indeed such a challenge, and that we may even have to broaden our definition of such groups than we have done up to now – but I’ll get back to this later...