14/04/2008 President
“If we attempt to review the major events in Europe since our January part-session, we will see that European unity has been sorely tested. I am thinking in particular of the declaration of independence by the Assembly of Kosovo and the differences that emerged between Council of Europe members at the NATO summit in Bucharest,” PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig said in his opening speech of the Assembly’s spring session.
“It is no doubt impossible at this stage to give complete answers to the many questions that have arisen in connection with these two events, and especially the question of whether we are not in fact in the process of creating new divisions in Europe. Our continent is extraordinarily complex in terms of its history, culture and geopolitics and we must respect the feelings of our peoples in this regard. After all, European unity does not mean European uniformity,” he concluded.