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.”
16/05/2007 | President
Speaking at the Europa-Karlspreis-Forum in Aachen today, PACE President René van der Linden called for more understanding and patience with Russia. “Let us give Russia some time to become a valuable partner of Europe. You can not change a power like Russia in a fortnight,” he said.
12/05/2007 | President
“I would like to welcome last night’s announcement that agreement has been reached to form a new Serbian government,” said PACE President René van der Linden in a statement. “I hope this can bring an end to the recent period of political uncertainty, and that the new government will get on with the task of implementing democratic reforms for the benefit of all Serbians." The President also warmly welcomed the reported agreement between Mr Tadić and Mr Koštunica to elect a new Speaker of Parliament.
09/05/2007 | President
PACE President René van der Linden, today expressed his deep concern over the newly elected speaker of Serbia’s Parliament, Tomislav Nikolic, a leader of the Serb Radical Party. “’I have learned with consternation of the election of Tomislav Nikolic, member of a political party run by an indicted war criminal, to the post of Speaker of the Serbian Parliament. In this context, I want to recall that co-operation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia is not optional, but a legally-binding obligation and a commitment that Serbia undertook when joining the Council of Europe.
09/05/2007 | President
“It has been a long time coming, but the wait was well worth while,” said PACE President René van der Linden today, commenting on the Northern Ireland Assembly as it reconvened for the first time in over four-and-a-half years. “To see Mr Paisley and Mr McGuiness take office as First Minister and Deputy First Minister, to see them smiling side-by-side as partners in this exciting moment: this is truly inspiring and, I am confident, a sign of happier times to come, since it will contribute to the development of a stable and prosperous northern Ireland,” he continued.
02/05/2007 | President
"This month, our Assembly launched a unique new initiative – an Annual report on the state of human rights and democracy in Europe, which must become the essential reference on the state of democracy and human rights in Europe. We have invited all our national parliaments to hold their own debates on the report, to ensure that governments take these issues much more seriously, both at home and abroad", PACE President René van der Linden said on 1st May adressing the 116th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union.