The Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) denounces the decision of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) to ratify the credentials of the Russian delegation despite the Russian Federation not having complied with its commitments and obligations towards the Council of Europe.
The UWC reminds the representatives to the esteemed body that earlier PACE resolutions reaffirmed the commitment of PACE “to the principle of peaceful settlement of disputes and to the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, within its internationally recognised borders.” Further on Crimea, PACE has condemned “the illegal annexation of the peninsula and its continuing integration into the Russian Federation, in breach of international law and the Statute of the Council of Europe.”
PACE fulfills a vital role in promoting cooperation among parliamentarians in a laudable effort to unite democracies around common values and interests. The ongoing blatant aggression against Ukraine by the Russian Federation together with its continuous violations of international law undermine these fundamental values and must preclude its participation in PACE.
The voting rights of the Russian Federation in PACE were reinstated in June 2019 after having been expelled five years earlier for its aggression in Ukraine.
“The Ukrainian World Congress denounces the engagement of the Russian Federation in PACE as contradictory to the democratic values it promotes,” stated UWC President Paul Grod. “We urge all PACE delegations to remain committed to the resolutions of the Assembly and vigilant of the persistent violations of the territorial integrity of Ukraine and the fundamental human rights of its people.”
