Russia to negotiate its participation in PACE summer session
On June 10, The Russian State Duma will consult with the leadership of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe about sending a Russian delegation to the June session of the assembly, as reported by Interfax. Following the talks, an application to participate in the session could be sent, State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said.
During the consultation, the issue of ensuring equal rights to the delegations will be discussed. “It is important for us to discuss how equal membership in PACE can be guaranteed, a value enshrined in the Statute of the Council of Europe, but not reflected in the regulations of the Parliamentary Assembly,” Volodin said.
Vice-Speaker Pyotr Tolstoy and Chairman of the International Affairs Committee Leonid Slutsky will represent the Duma at the negotiations. Representatives of the Federation Council will also take part in the consultations.
Earlier, Slutsky said that Russia will take part in the session if PACE decides, on the very first day, that applying sanctions to national delegations should not be allowed. So that a Russian delegation could be sent to PACE, technical adjustments will also be required to confirm the amendment, not only in January, but throughout the whole year.
Russia has not participated in PACE sessions since April 2014, when its delegation was deprived of its right to vote because of the annexation Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the war in the Donbas.