Baltic states working to expel Russia from Council of Europe

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March 14 and 15 see the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) taking place in Strasbourg, France. The agenda includes a vote on the expulsion of Russia from the organisation.

According to the Head of the Estonian delegation to PACE Maria Jufereva-Skuratovski, Estonia is actively cooperating with its Nordic and Baltic colleagues (NB8) including Latvia to expel Russia from the Council of Europe, a release from the Estonian parliament said.

Jufereva-Skuratovski said that now that Russia was waging a large-scale war against Ukraine which kills and injures civilians and children, all delegates to the PACE must stand united and support the expulsion of the aggressor from this value-based organisation.

“There is no justification for the regime which has caused the biggest geopolitical catastrophe of the 21st century, whose aftermath Europe will have to deal with for decades to come,” she stated.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy will speak to the delegates today at 1 p.m. The discussion can be followed on the PACE web page: https://pace.coe.int/en/pages/session-20220314

If the PACE supports expelling Russia from the Council of Europe by a two thirds majority, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe will decide in the next few days whether to request Russia to leave the Council of Europe or not.

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is the parliamentary dimension of the Council of Europe. The main objective of the PACE is to strengthen the parliaments of its member states, promote and protect human rights, the rule of law, and democratic governance in all European countries, and share its experience of democracy with the parliaments of the organisation’s partners and observers.

There are six MPs in the Latvian delegation to the PACE (three representatives and three substitutes).

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