24/06/2025 | 13:02:51 You did so, Honourable Deputy Prime Minister of Malta. Thank you so much. Dear colleagues, before closing, the ballot for electing the judge with respect to the UK to the European Court of Human Rights is now closed. The counting of votes will take place under the supervision of the tellers. I repeat the names: On behalf of the Socialists, Democrats and Greens Group, Denis BEGIC from Sweden; On behalf of the Group of the European People's Party, Sergiy VLASENKO from Ukraine; On behalf of... 24/06/2025 | 12:22:14 Thank you, Mr BORG. Before I start the Q-and-A procedure, I would like to remind my colleagues that there is a vote in progress to elect a judge with respect to the United Kingdom to the European Court of Human Rights. The poll will close at 1:00 p.m. Those who have not yet voted may still do so by going to the area behind the President's chair. And the second announcement, I have already spoken about this morning in my opening remarks, but now that most ambassadors, if not all, are present... 24/06/2025 | 12:02:56 Thank you, Marietta. Dear colleagues, we will now close this debate, which will continue this afternoon after the Q and A with Secretary General BERSET. Ladies and gentlemen, dear colleagues, it is an honour for us now to welcome to this Assembly Mr Ian BORG, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Tourism of Malta and President of the Committee of Ministers. Dear Minister BORG, I have already had the pleasure of meeting with you during your visit to the Council of Europe in... 24/06/2025 | 11:33:30 Now, I remind you that we come now to the joint debate on two reports from the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights and the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy, respectively. The first is titled "Legal and human rights aspects of the Russian Federation's aggression against Ukraine", presented by Mr Eerik-Niiles KROSS on behalf of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights and the Committee. The second is titled "Support for political negotiations to enforce exchange and... 24/06/2025 | 11:31:57 Thank you, Lord Richard KEEN. Dear colleagues, you have heard my opinion yesterday. I shouldn't intervene, of course, in this debate. I only want to share with you an information received by a friend, a lawyer who's watching us from Athens, about the adaptivity of the rule in modern times. And I'm sure that Richard will agree with that. The oldest law still enforced today in the world is the Statute of Marlborough, enacted in 1267, 800 years ago as part of English parliamentary law. It is not... 24/06/2025 | 10:03:36 The sitting is open. Good morning, dear colleagues. This morning, the Agenda calls for the election of a judge for the European Court of Human Rights in respect of the United Kingdom. The list of candidates and biographical notices are to be found in Document 16177. The Committee's opinion is presented in Document 16198, Addendum 2. The voting will take place in the area behind the President's Chair. At 1:00 p.m., I shall announce the closing of the poll. Counting will then take place... 23/06/2025 | 12:46:01 I will comment on that later, about women in the world. I'm really glad that I see our former president, Tiny KOX, is with us today. You have already seen him on screen, signing on behalf of the Assembly this very important prize. Dear colleagues, more than 100 eligible nominations were submitted for the Vigdís Prize Award. They came from all over the world, diverse in form, scope and setting, but they shared a common thread. They offered hope, hope that the world can indeed be more just... 23/06/2025 | 12:32:30 Dear colleagues, ladies and gentlemen, It is a pleasure to open the awards ceremony of the second edition of the Parliamentary Assembly Vigdís Prize for Women's Empowerment. I was wondering yesterday, why do I award prizes? Looking back in history, I found that prizes speak a language as old as politics. They are society's way of saying, "we see you." They illuminate paths, celebrate courage and validate hope. From ancient laurel wreaths at the Olympic Games to today's ceremonies, prizes have... 23/06/2025 | 11:52:17 Before I move on to our first item, I remind the Assembly that Members who have not submitted an annual declaration of interests are required to start any intervention with an oral declaration of interests under paragraph 20 of the Code of Conduct for Members of the Parliamentary Assembly. Dear colleagues, the first item on the Agenda is the examination of credentials of new members. The names of the members are in Doc. 16203. If no credentials are challenged, the credentials will be... 23/06/2025 | 11:43:54 Dear colleagues, good morning. There was a slight problem with registration, which is why we're delayed. Dear colleagues, Ladies and gentlemen, Although we are at the end of June, today I will talk to you about May. May is more than just the month of spring for Europe – it is a month of foundations and milestones. In May 1945, hope returned after the war. In May 1948, the idea of European unity was born at the Hague Congress. In May 1949, the Council of Europe was founded. Decades later, this...