Last year, the editorial that appeared in The Ukrainian Weekly in the June 30/July 7 issue noted that on June 25, 2019, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) had voted to reinstate the Russian delegation and its voting rights, which were revoked in response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014. The assembly voted 116 in favor, 62 against and 10 abstaining. Russia did absolutely nothing to justify its reinstatement, the editorial underscored.
In 2014, PACE declared Russia’s actions a “clear contradiction of the Statute of the Council of Europe.” Russia’s delegation was allowed to continue to attend sessions, and vote in committees, but its members were not allowed to head committees, and Russia was prohibited from participation in various PACE bodies and mission. Russia refused to participate in PACE in 2016, and in 2017 stopped paying its membership dues.