News
Congress recommendation on Reykjavik Summit: Local and regional authorities contribute to embedding democracy and human rights at grassroots level
On 22 March the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities adopted its recommendation on “the future of the Council of Europe and the role of the Congress therein” as contribution to the Council of Europe Summit to be held in Reykjavik on 16 and 17 May. The recommendation calls on Heads of State...
Local and regional authorities to play essential role in implementing decisions taken at Council of Europe Summit
Local and regional authorities and communities are at the frontline in reacting to crises in Europe and will be essential to implementing decisions taken at the highest political level at the 4th Summit of Heads of States and Government of the Council of Europe that is taking place in Reykjavik...
Declaration on imprisoned Russian opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza
Joint Declaration from the Icelandic Minister for Foreign Affairs and President of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, Thórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörd Gylfadóttir, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Marija Pejčinović Burić, the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of...
Council of Europe Summit unites Heads of State and Government around Ukraine and European values
The Icelandic Presidency of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers is hosting a Summit of Heads of State and Government from the organisation’s 46 member states on 16 and 17 May in Reykjavik. This is the 4th Summit of the Council of Europe since its creation in 1949. The Summit will be an...
New Prize will reward achievements leading to women’s empowerment, says Secretary General
Council of Europe Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić has welcomed the launch of the Parliamentary Assembly Vigdís Prize for Women’s Empowerment. Speaking at a side event on the eve of the fourth Council of Europe Summit, she said the prize – named after former Icelandic president Vigdís...
Summit parliamentary dimension: PACE Standing Committee meets in Reykjavik
The Parliamentary Assembly has put all its political weight in support of the Summit, pushing for it to be held and providing a substantive input to it though a host of texts, including its Recommendation 2245 (2023) on ‘The Reykjavík Summit of the Council of Europe - United around values in the...
Youth work in time of war in Ukraine
What impact is Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine having on young people in the country and on the way youth work is conducted? This question and the support that the Council of Europe has been providing to youth work in Ukraine, are the subject of a series of short documentaries first...
Time for urgent action to stop democratic backsliding, Secretary General tells Summit
Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić has called on Europe’s leaders to act urgently to reverse a slide in democracy. Speaking at the opening session of the fourth Council of Europe Summit of Heads of State and Government, she stressed that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine was an extreme...
European leaders unite around Ukraine and European values
Iceland has welcomed heads of state and government to the fourth Council of Europe Summit in Reykjavik. The Summit is an historic opportunity to reaffirm the common commitment to the Council of Europe’s core values and to refocus its mission in the light of new threats to human rights and...
Council of Europe Summit creates register of damage for Ukraine as first step towards an international compensation mechanism for victims of Russian aggression
On the second day of the Council of Europe Summit in Reykjavik, Iceland, Marija Pejčinović Burić, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Prime Minister of Iceland, Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Thórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörd Gylfadóttir, Minister for Foreign...