2023-10-13 12:11:28
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) called on the member states of the Council of Europe to “recognize Vladimir Putin illegitimate after the end of his current presidential term and stop all contacts with him, except for humanitarian contacts and to achieve peace.”
As noted in the official announcement of PARE, Vladimir Putin has been in the position of president or prime minister since 2000. Amendments to the Russian Constitution in July 2020 extended his potential presidential term to 2036, leading to a lack of checks and balances in the country.
“The overwhelming power of the president, resulting from an extremely long term in office, combined with the absence of any checks and balances, such as a strong parliament, an independent judiciary, a free media and an active civil society, has turned the Russian Federation into a de facto dictatorship. “, said the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
The corresponding resolution was supported unanimously in PARE. It notes that “the refusal to limit the term of office of the current president violates both the Russian constitution and international legal principles.”
PARE also mentioned Belarus:
“These trends, with a limited response from the international community, have set a disturbing precedent for countries that lack strong democratic traditions, as seen in the case of Belarus, where a self-proclaimed de facto president remains in power despite the non-recognition of the 2020 election results.”
PACE cited Russian aggression against Ukraine and its consequences as evidence that dictatorships “pose a threat to international peace and security, as well as the territorial integrity and political independence of their neighbors,” as defined in Article 2 of the UN Charter. Thus, the parliamentarians declared that the restoration of democracy in Russia is in the interests not only of the Russian people, but also of Europe and the whole world.
PACE confirmed its support for the creation of a special international criminal tribunal “to hold the Russian leadership, including Vladimir Putin, accountable” for their actions, ranging from the illegal annexation of Crimea, the war in Donbass and the downing of flight MH17.
Ukraine reacted to the approval of the resolution.
“I welcome the strong resolution of PACE, which recognizes Russia as a dictatorship. More than 20 years of one-man unconstitutional rule leads to crimes inside and outside the country,” — stated Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba.
What is PARE and the Council of Europe
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is one of the two main statutory bodies of the Council of Europe: a consultative body consisting of representatives of the parliaments of all member states. PARE is the oldest body of interparliamentary cooperation in Europe, it was founded on May 5, 1949. The Assembly adopts resolutions and recommendations based on reports prepared by deputies. The mission of the Council of Europe is to defend human rights and the separation of powers, to stop the death penalty throughout the continent. In the 1990s, the Supreme Council of Belarus had the status of a special invitee to PARE, but after the 1996 referendum, this status was lost. After a full-scale attack on Ukraine in 2022, Russia itself withdrew from the Council of Europe.
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