05/06/2007 | President
“After more than five years, the US authorities are still failing to provide any semblance of justice for the alleged terrorists detained at Guantánamo Bay,” said PACE President René van der Linden today, following the US military court’s ruling that it lacked jurisdiction over the detainees. “The Military Commissions Act has been shown to be just as unworkable as the system it replaced,” continued President van der Linden. “By seeking to exclude legal safeguards provided by the US Constitution and international law, the US government is both flaunting justice and undermining the fight against terrorism.”
04/06/2007 | President
“Europe squabbles while people drown,” PACE President René van der Linden said today when asked to comment on the 18 bodies found floating off the South Coast of Malta last Friday. “Europe is losing sight of its responsibilities,” he continued, referring to the other incident last week when 27 shipwrecked Africans spent 3 days clinging to tuna fish nets in the Mediterranean while states argues over responsibility for the shipwrecked people.
01/06/2007 | President
Speaking at the International Conference on Pan-European Cooperation “Inter-Cultural and Inter-Religious Dialogue” in Saint-Petersburg on 1 June, René van der Linden stressed that neither Europe nor the wider world can afford to enter into a clash of civilisations. “Inter-religious and inter-cultural dialogue is one of the most important issues of our times”, he said and reiterated his proposal to give an official status to churches with the Council of Europe. Mr van der Linden said he was confident that after the extended debate on inter-cultural and inter-religious dialogue at the Assembly’s June session (25-29 June), parliamentarians would vote in favour of recommending a new status for religious bodies.
31/05/2007 | President
“The biggest challenge and the most important task for Europe in the next 10 to 15 years is the integration of Russia into European structures,” said PACE President René van der Linden today, addressing the Interparliamentary Assembly of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in Saint Petersburg. “The success of the European continent cannot be guaranteed without a strong and profound partnership with Russia.” The President said that change in a power such as Russia would take more than a fortnight, and that “understanding and patience” was needed. However, he stressed that Russia must also fulfil its Council of Europe commitments, as all member states must do.
31/05/2007 | President
PACE President René van der Linden met yesterday the Speaker of the Russian State Duma Boris Gryzlov to discuss the importance of the Council of Europe for building closer relations between Russia and the rest of Europe, respect for fundamental freedoms in Russia and the relocation of the Bronze Soldier memorial in Tallinn. PACE President also this morning addressed the Interparliamentary Assembly of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), meeting to celebrate its 15th anniversary. He is due to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow on 2 June.
27/05/2007 | President
PACE President René van der Linden today warmly welcomed the agreement reached this morning between Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko and the country’s Prime Minister, Viktor Yanukovych, on the holding of parliamentary elections on 30th September 2007.
23/05/2007 | President
On 23 May René van der Linden made an official visit to Belgrade. He met Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica and Foreign Affairs Minister Vuk Jeremic. Discussions focused on the country’s chairmanship in the 47-member organisation, further integration of Serbia, co-operation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the issue of Kosovo.
23/05/2007 | President
PACE President René van der Linden, currently on an official visit to Belgrade, strongly condemned the recent bomb attack in Ankara. “In our societies there is no place for those who put bombs in our streets to kill innocent people. Nothing can justify such attacks, which are an assault on the fundamental principles of our societies,” he said. Expressing his firm support for the democratic institutions in Turkey he said “we have to fight those who destabilise them. We have to stand firm for democracy and the rule of law and intensify cooperation in the fight against terrorism.” He sent his condolences to the families of the victims and expressed his solidarity with the Turkish people and authorities.
23/05/2007 | President
Reacting to today’s verdict in the murder of Zoran Djindjic, Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) President René van der Linden, who is currently on an official visit to Belgrade, expressed the hope that this verdict would help to heal the wounds not only of his family, but of all those democrats who suffered, of a country which had been derailed from its firm track towards Europe. “What counts,” he said, “is that your country is back on its way towards further European integration. This is probably the best way of honouring the memory of Zoran Djinjic.” “He had paved the way for a democratic Serbia, fully complying with international law by extraditing Slobodan Milosevic to the ICTY,” said Mr van der Linden expressing the hope that the newly formed government will follow Mr Djinjic’s path.
23/05/2007 | President
René van der Linden today warmly welcomed the election of Oliver Dulić (DS) as the new Speaker of the Serbian Parliament. “His election is an important signal for the international community. He is a committed democrat and a convinced European which he has shown as former chairman of the European Integration Committee of the now-defunct parliament of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. This is good news for the country and its people, for its further European integration and last but not least for the Council of Europe, as Serbia has just taken over the Chairmanship of the Organisation’s executive, the Committee of Ministers, for six months,” Mr van der Linden said.
22/05/2007 | President
Politicians in Ukraine must urgently find a clear political solution to the current crisis, or risk losing their credibility in the eyes of both Ukrainians and the international community, according to René van der Linden, who is concluding a two-day visit to the country (21-22 May 2007).
16/05/2007 | President
PACE President René van der Linden will try to seek consensus between President Yushchenko and Prime Minister Yanukovych during meetings with both leaders, as well as with representatives of parliamentary factions, in Kyiv on 21 and 22 May 2007. Speaking on the eve of his visit, President van der Linden said: “I will be encouraging the parties to continue trying to find common ground to defuse this crisis, including an agreement on a future election and further constitutional reforms, as recommended by the Assembly in its resolution last month.”