27/03/2024 | Political Affairs and Democracy
The Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has recommended that Kosovo* be invited to become a member of the Council of Europe. Approving a draft Opinion during a meeting held today in Paris, based on a report by Dora Bakoyannis...
12/03/2024 | Political Affairs and Democracy
The Political Affairs Committee, at its meeting on 5 March in Paris, welcomed the elaboration of the Venice Commission Checklist Parameters on the relationship between the parliamentary majority and the opposition in a democracy. It recommended this checklist to the parliaments of the Council of...
12/03/2024 | Political Affairs and Democracy
At its meeting on 5 March in Paris, the PACE Political Affairs committee endorsed the Revised Code of Good Practice on Referendums, responding to concerns about the fairness and outcomes of national referendums. This endorsement builds upon Resolution 2251 (2019), where the Assembly highlighted...
30/01/2024 | Political Affairs and Democracy
The Council of Europe should lead a process for “the seizure of Russian state assets and their use in support of the reconstruction of Ukraine”, according to PACE’s Political Affairs Committee. In a draft resolution based on a report by Lulzim Basha (Albania, EPP/CD), the committee said Russia...
11/01/2024 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Leading representatives of democratic forces from Belarus as well as members of civil society and journalists joined with parliamentarians from across Europe in Helsinki on 11-12 January 2024 for discussions on building a democratic future for Belarus. The “Helsinki Dialogue” event, jointly...
08/01/2024 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Leading representatives of democratic forces from Belarus – including their leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya – as well as members of civil society and journalists will join parliamentarians from across Europe in Helsinki on 11-12 January 2024 for discussions on building a democratic future for...
13/12/2023 | Political Affairs and Democracy
At its meeting in Paris, the Political Committee “unequivocally and in the strongest possible terms" condemned the barbaric attack conducted by Hamas and other militia groups against Israel on 7 October 2023, acts which “cannot be justified on any grounds whatsoever”. The parliamentarians...
12/12/2023 | Political Affairs and Democracy
The PACE Political Affairs committee reaffirmed its dedication to supporting and advocating for the rights, freedoms, and safety of all Belarusians, expressing solidarity with all those impacted by the crimes of the Lukashenka regime. It reiterated its “ambition to welcome a future democratic...
31/10/2023 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Dora Bakoyannis (Greece, EPP/CD), rapporteur for the Political Affairs Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on the application by Kosovo for membership of the Council of Europe, is to make a fact-finding visit to Kosovo from 1 to 3 November 2023. She is due to...
20/10/2023 | Parliamentary support
A conference on inter-parliamentary dialogue to further promote the European integration of the Western Balkans was organised on Friday 20 October in Skopje by the PACE Inter-parliamentary Co-operation and Project Support Division, the PACE Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy, and the...
10/10/2023 | Political Affairs and Democracy
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is to create a “recurring contact platform” for dialogue with representatives of Russian democratic opposition forces who share Council of Europe values, fully respect Ukraine’s territorial integrity and condemn Russia’s war of aggression...
07/10/2023 | Political Affairs and Democracy
"Nothing justifies Hamas' disastrous decision to start a war against Israel. This aggression must be unequivocally condemned, thereby expressing solidarity and closeness to Israel and its citizens," stated Piero Fassino (Italy, SOC), Rapporteur of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of...