For Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatović, “member states should seize the opportunity of the Summit to reaffirm their commitment to the values and standards of the Council of Europe and show resolve to reverse the current backsliding on human rights". 

With Russia's war in Ukraine having caused enormous suffering and widespread human rights violations, the Commissioner emphasizes the importance for the Summit to “focus on accountability and the need to investigate and prosecute the perpetrators of serious violations of international humanitarian law and gross violations of human rights”. She also calls for a renewed commitment to address other pressing human rights issues through better implementation of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights, in particular with regard to systemic non-compliance, and the protection of the independence and impartiality of the judiciary. The Commissioner also hopes to see greater emphasis on the human rights dimension of environmental degradation, countering the anti-gender backlash, and strengthening social and economic rights and equality. Finally, the Commissioner sees the Summit as providing an opportunity to” better future proof our human rights work”. For that, “we need to respond rapidly to developments, create an enabling environment for civil society, National Human Rights Structures and human rights defenders and harness the power of youth”.