Russia refused to renew contributions to PACE
Russia will not return to PACE and pay dues in 2019, as the West refuses to lift sanctions against the Russian delegation imposed after the events in Crimea in 2014.
This was reported by State Duma deputy Leonid Slutsky, emphasizing that “the Russophobic minority is now allowed to set the tone in the oldest European parliamentary organization.”
“The meeting of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs has ended, where my colleagues and I discussed the situation surrounding relations between Russia and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, as well as our presence in Strasbourg this year. I will say right away: we proposed not to submit an application for Russia’s participation in PACE for 2019 and approved the text of the corresponding statement.
We will propose to the chamber to submit it for consideration on January 17.
Let me just quote one: “The State Duma sees no reason for the return of the Russian delegation to PACE and the resumption of payment of the Russian Federation’s contributions to the budget of the Council of Europe in 2019,” Slutsky explained.
Sanctions were imposed on the Russian delegation to PACE in April 2014 after the reunification of Crimea with the Russian Federation. The State Duma delegation was deprived of the right to vote, and its members were deprived of the right to occupy leadership positions in PACE, be appointed as rapporteurs and participate in monitoring missions.
In response, as a sign of protest, since July 2014, the Russian delegation has refused to participate in PACE meetings. Speaker of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko said that Russia will not recognize the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and the powers of the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, since the Russian delegation does not participate in voting for their candidacies.
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