The Council of Europe, the main institution governing human rights on the continent, begins a summit in Iceland on Tuesday, with discussions among the heads of state to include what steps they can take to support Ukraine in its defense against Russian aggression.
The toll of the war in Ukraine, and how the rest of Europe can best help, is expected to be a major focus of the gathering — only the fourth since the council was established in 1949, after World War II. Leaders from many of the council’s 46 member nations are expected in person, but President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, who has been on a whirlwind tour of Europe in recent days, attended virtually.
“Ukraine must take center stage” at the summit, the council’s secretary general, Marija Pejcinovic Buric, said in a statement. She added that “accountability for the death and destruction caused by Russian aggression is vital,” suggesting that the organization could take a leading role in establishing a record to document evidence and claims of damage, loss or injury in Ukraine as a result of Russia’s invasion.
Russia became a member of the council in 1996, in the years following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, but was suspended from it last year after attacking Ukraine. The invasion “goes against everything we stand for and is a violation of our statute and of the European Convention on Human Rights,’’ Ms. Buric told The Times in March 2022.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of Britain, who is scheduled to attend the two-day event, will “use these gatherings to push for sustained international support for Ukraine, both in terms of military aid and long-term security assurances,” his office said in a statement.
The council, which is distinct from the European Union, was formed to uphold democracy, human rights and the rule of law on the continent. It has a parliamentary assembly and governs the European Court of Human Rights, which decides cases brought from any member country. Its previous summits were in 1993, 1997 and 2005.
The agenda is expected to touch on a number of hot-button issues besides Ukraine, including climate change and artificial intelligence. The prime minister of Iceland, Katrin Jakobsdottir, said in a statement that she would “use this platform to champion the rights of women and girls, the environment, and children and youth.”
The meeting comes days ahead of the Group of 7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan, which starts on Friday.
Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said in a statement that a unified response to the invasion of Ukraine would be an underlying theme of the summits, and that she would “very strongly support the creation of a dedicated tribunal to bring Russia’s crime of aggression to trial.”
Tinggalkan Balasan