PACE deprives Russian delegation of voting right due to annexation of Crimea


On April, 10 the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe deprived the Russian delegation of a voting right and banned Russians to take leading posts in PACE till an end of the year due to the fact the Russian lawmakers supported actions on occupation and annexation of Crimea by Moscow.

During the debates on April 10, the delegates rejected an amendment proposing to annul Russian delegation’s credentials. Russia has been excluded from the Bureau, presidential and permanent committees till the end of the year. The delegation is deprived of the right to participate in the Assembly’s observation missions.
“The so-called referendum” in Crimea was unconstitutional. Its outcome and “the illegal annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation therefore have no legal effect and are not recognised by the Council of Europe”, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) stated in an resolution on April 9.
The parliamentarians said that none of the arguments used by the Russian Federation to justify its actions hold true to facts and evidence. “The drive for secession and integration into the Russian Federation was instigated and incited by the Russian authorities, under the cover of a military intervention”, the resolution underlined, while recommending that the signatories of the Budapest Agreement, as well as other relevant European States, “explore the possibility for tangible security agreements to ensure Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

The Assembly fully recognised the legitimacy of the new authorities in Kyiv and the Verkovna Rada, “as well as the legality of their decisions” and regretted attempts to question the legitimacy of the new authorities, “which can only serve to destabilise the country”.

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