10/04/2025 Session | Convention Européenne des Droits de l'Homme
[Traduction en cours]
PACE has set out the final few steps that could lead – after more than 40 years of discussions – to the accession of the EU to the European Convention on Human Rights.
Approving a resolution based on a report by Titus Corlăţean (Romania, SOC), the Assembly said “what appears to be the last remaining obstacle to accession” could potentially have been solved by a September 2024 ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union clarifying its jurisdiction with regard to common foreign and security policy.
It also welcomed the March 2023 provisional agreement on the draft accession instruments which succeeded in resolving all the other issues raised by the Court of Justice of the European Union in its 2014 negative opinion on accession.
To maintain “the current momentum” in light of these positive developments, the Assembly called on the EU to request a fresh opinion from the Court of Justice “without delay” and, if the opinion is positive, to conclude the agreement “as soon as possible”.
It also invited the European Parliament to support the accession and start the consultations on modalities for it to participate in the Assembly when electing judges of the European Court of Human Rights.
Council of Europe member states should do all they can to ensure the rapid conclusion of the accession agreement and its entry into force, while all parties should “raise awareness among citizens” about the stronger protection of their rights that would result from EU accession to the Convention.
This would allow individuals to bring cases against EU bodies that had violated their rights, ensure the two European courts are aligned, and recommit to human rights at a time when Europe’s shared values are under threat.