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Speech by Bjørn Berge, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe

 

Dear Anne Brasseur,

Dr. Salim Amin,

Philipp Ivo Kratzer,

Dear friends,

It is a great honour to be here today to deliver the Kinkel-lecture, hosted by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation.

In September 1992, the then Federal Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel took the floor at the UN General Assembly, to denounce the war of extermination and expulsion in Bosnia-Herzegovina — but also the wars in Somalia, Sudan, Liberia, Afghanistan, Georgia and Nagorno-Karabakh.

He said, and I quote:

“Even setbacks must not divert us from this right path towards the rule of law and respect for human dignity. There is no reasonable alternative to this, unless one wanted to go back to the law of the strongest.” End of quote.

It is impossible not to hear the resonance of those words in what is happening right now in Ukraine.

The last few days have seen new impetus in the peace talks on Ukraine.

What has leaked of the initial 28-point plan seems however very one-sided, which is why it is reassuring to see negotiations now underway in Geneva between Ukraine, supported by a group of European countries, and the United States, for a more balanced solution.

And today, we can read in the news about some progress on an updated and refined peace framework containing 19 points.

Kinkel’s warning speaks directly to this moment.

And it raises a very pertinent question:

Are we prepared to accept a settlement shaped by power alone, a peace defined by the aggressor —

Or do we uphold the fundamental principles of the UN Charter - on sovereignty, territorial integrity, and human dignity?

The book “If Russia Wins” is a German and international best-seller by prof. Carlo Masala of the Bundeswehr University in Munich. Maybe some of you have read it.

He asks us to consider a scenario where Russia prevails in Ukraine.

And to confront the broader question of what follows, if Ukraine is only the beginning.

What if European security, and our wider liberal order, are at stake — while we once again sadly stick our heads in the sand.

You see that this is what the cost of failure looks like.

That is why a lasting peace in Ukraine must be built on justice — and why the aggressor must not be rewarded in any way.

I believe the choice before us today is the same one Kinkel described more than thirty years ago:

Do we uphold the rule of law, even when it is difficult?

Or do we allow the law of the strongest to become the new normal?

To answer these questions, we need to go back to another turning point.

9 November 1989: the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Thirty-six years on, the images still remain vivid:

Young people climbing the wall, singing, breaking off pieces as souvenirs.

The Cold War’s shadow suddenly lifting.

The wall’s collapse became the symbol of authoritarian communist regimes falling across Europe.

Within two years, the USSR itself dissolved.

And with that, a wave of countries turned to the Council of Europe to consolidate their democracies.

Hungary in 1990, then Poland, Bulgaria and many others — including Ukraine.

Our organisation — and democracy across Europe — felt stronger than ever, it was a time of genuine optimism.

Looking back, few could have imagined that in 2025, we would again face a major war in Europe — and see our democracies strained by global shocks and domestic pressures.

And our core values — democracy, human rights, and the rule of law — being under constant assault.

Be it by foreign information manipulation and interference undermining the very foundation of our democracies - free and fair elections.

Or LGBTI rights that are threatened by anti-rights movements. Or online hate surging, targeting women in particular — with artificial intelligence accelerating its spread.

Or be it civil society activists being harassed, protesters intimidated, anti-migrant, antisemitic and anti-Muslim rhetoric rising — while journalists, face lawsuits, threats, and even death.

Dear friends,

An IPSOS Poll released this month makes the picture impossible to ignore:  

Half of voters across Western democracies — from seven EU countries, the UK and the U.S —now believe their democracy is broken.

Fake news and the spread of false information rank as the top threat.

I believe we all know that truth is often the first casualty in any war.

And propaganda and lies can ignite conflict long before the first shot is fired.

“Falsehood flies, and truth comes limping after it,” wrote Jonathan Swift in 1710.

A warning that when people finally see through the lie, the damage is already done.

We have experienced this throughout history. And over and over again outright falsehoods has been used to justify illegal attacks on innocent people.

Russia’s leaders and state-controlled media did exactly this in the lead-up to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

President Putin’s article of 12 July 2021 — seven months before the invasion — denied the legitimacy of Ukraine’s government and questioned Ukraine’s right to exist.

He tried also to construct a narrative of a ‘historical unity’ between Ukraine and Russia, lamenting a supposed wall between Russia and Ukraine.

But he ignored that this ‘wall’ was actually built by Russia itself, through the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the war it launched in eastern Ukraine the same year, where more than 14.000 Ukrainians lost their lives.

As historian Anne Applebaum has noted, the article was “a call to arms,” laying the groundwork for an invasion.

President Putin followed up with two major televised speeches, just before the full-scale invasion in February 2022.

On 21 February 2022 – a few days before the full-fledged Russian invasion, he again denied Ukraine’s right to exist and announced Russia would recognise the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine as independent states, prompting overwhelming international condemnation.

The purpose of this distorted narrative was clear: to portray Ukraine as an artificial creation without a real history.

In truth, Ukraine’s history is centuries deep — shaped by its position between Europe and Asia, its cultural diversity, and its long political evolution.

Its geography has always been a frontier to civilizations, a crossroads of empires, faiths, and peoples.

In the early hours of 24 February 2022 – the day of the invasion, President Putin delivered yet another speech — this time announcing a so-called “special military operation,” a euphemism meant to disguise a full-scale invasion of a neighbouring country.

Moreover, he claimed that the aim was “to protect people” from alleged humiliation and “genocide,” and “to demilitarize and denazify Ukraine” — a narrative built on falsehoods.   

As the Ukrainian historian Serhii Plokhy has noted, despite Putin’s myths of “liberation,” many Ukrainians saw the Russian forces as the true Nazi occupiers – as many still remembers Nazi Germany’s attack on the Soviet Union, including Ukraine, in June 1941.

But truth is far from the only casualty of Russia’s war of aggression on Ukraine.

Ukrainian civilians are killed almost every day.

More than 50,000 have already lost their lives, and military deaths and injuries on the Ukraine side are likely ten times higher.

These are not statistics. They are people who had homes, families, and futures.

At the same time, the destruction is vast: homes and businesses ruined, livelihoods shattered, and entire communities living with deep psychological trauma — watching friends and family die, enduring constant lack of sleep and a flow of air-raid sirens and explosions.

Also the numerous attacks on energy infrastructure, mean hospitals fail, and as winter brings freezing temperatures, many are left without electricity or heat — with the most vulnerable – as always – suffering the most.

And the children.

More than 20,000 Ukrainian children have been forcibly removed from Ukraine — abducted, separated from their families, and are still missing.

Dear friends,

I represent an organisation that for more than seven decades has tried to contribute to peace in Europe, and that has created a unique and effective system for protecting human rights across our continent.

After the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, we moved within 24 hours to suspend Russia from the Council of Europe.

And three weeks later – on March 16, after 26 years of membership, Russia was expelled.

This in response to Russia’s completely unacceptable aggression. And since then, we have done everything we can to support Ukraine, focusing on justice, accountability, supporting the people of Ukraine — now and in the long-term.

Let me now briefly update you on the four key areas of our work in this regard.

First, together with Ukraine, more than 50 countries and the EU, we established a Register for Damage for Ukraine.

Documenting the losses is essential for any just and lasting peace.

More than 70,000 claims have so far been submitted.

Over 200 new claims arrive each day, and we recently added two new categories for the abduction of children and adults.

No claims have been rejected, and over 16,000 have been formally recorded.

We know these numbers will grow into the hundreds of thousands — perhaps even millions in the years to come.

At the same time, we are right now on track to open for signature the Convention Establishing an International Claims Commission for Ukraine, by the end of the year.

This Commission will properly adjudicate all claims submitted.

I hope all our member states will sign and ratify it quickly.

But registering the destruction, and adjudicating the claims, is not enough.

Victims must also be the compensated.

But this, I believe, is linked to the overall rebuilding and reconstruction of Ukraine that will come after the war.

The second major initiative I want to present to you today, is the work on a Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression.

The worst of all crimes.

Why is the crime of aggression the worst of all crimes?

Because it is the decision by a political leader – a government – to invade and conquer another country. And it is this decision that paves the way for all the other human rights violations - be it war crimes, crime against humanity or genocide or others.

That is why it is the worst of all crimes.

Earlier this year, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe and President Zelenskyy signed an agreement in Strasbourg on establishing the Special Tribunal.

I believe Klaus Kinkel would certainly have strongly supported this effort and approved of this idea.

Since he played a central role in confronting the crimes during the Yugoslav wars of the 1990s, and proposed the creation of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.

The third fundamental pillar of our work is the European Court of Human Rights — the only international tribunal adjudicating human-rights violations in the context of this war.

As already mentioned, Russia ceased to be a member of the Council of Europe as of 16 March 2022 — and is no longer a Party to the European Convention on Human Rights.

But Russia remains accountable for all violations committed before its departure.

And earlier this year, the Court delivered a landmark – if not historic - decision in the interstate case Ukraine and the Netherlands v Russia, covering events in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions from 2014 onward — and across Ukraine, from the start of the full-scale invasion.

The ruling also addressed the downing of commercial flight MH17, which killed all 298 civilians aboard.

The Court’s judgment is probably the most comprehensive it has ever given.

All in all, it contains close to 500 pages and addresses all the key aspects of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.

It is almost like reading a book, a comprehensive review of all the relevant developments and aspects of the on-going war.

Finally, my last point.

Together with the Ukrainian authorities, we have developed a comprehensive joint Action Plan for Ukraine — our most ambitious action plan in the history of our organisation.

The Action Plan looks to Ukraine’s future:

• Advancing human rights, equality, and human dignity.
• Strengthening social rights, diversity, and inclusion.
• And supporting Ukraine on its path toward EU membership.

It focuses on reinforcing rule of law-based institutions, combatting crime and corruption, and bolstering democratic governance and participation, as well as projects within local and regional democracy, culture and heritage.

To sum up, supporting those affected by the war — and ensuring that perpetrators of war crimes are brought to justice — is central to our work, and will help secure a just and lasting peace for Ukraine.

But dear friends,

None of these efforts, can stand without a foundation strong enough to carry them: the truth.

Even the Reykjavík Summit Declaration speaks of the “right to truth”.

George Orwell once said – I quote:

“The very concept of objective truth is fading out of the world. Lies will pass into history.”

Orwell died 75 years ago. He never saw the powerful technology, that today can spread lies in seconds.

But Orwell certainly understood the power of propaganda and disinformation.

His books have a strange relevance and resonance to our time, when it is increasingly difficult to know what is true and what is false — which videos are real and which are deepfaked, or whether the voice you hear belongs to a real person or to artificial intelligence.

There is no doubt that disinformation feeds political extremism, polarisation and distrust that are on the rise, even in so-called long-established liberal democracies.

The IPSOS poll I mentioned earlier also found wide-spread concern about fake news — and about the absence of accountability for those who spread it.

That concern is fully justified.

And last year’s World Economic Forum Global Risks Report identified disinformation and misinformation as the most severe global risks over the next two years — ahead of war, climate change, extreme weather, and pollution.

And in many ways: disinformation fuels each of these threats.

And it can undermine democratic elections, trigger social unrest, and even justify increased censorship in the name of countering disinformation. 

And behind them, armies of keyboard warriors amplify lies instantly, driving a relentless war on truth.

False information now also includes very convincing deep fakes — Artificial intelligence has made it almost impossible to rely on our eyes and ears alone.

And foreign information manipulation and interference, or FIMI, has become a clear and present danger to any democratic society.

It is mostly orchestrated by authoritarian regimes seeking to weaken democratically elected governments and erode public trust in democracy and our political institutions.

We have seen this recently in parliamentary elections in Czechia and the Republic of Moldova.

Speaking in the European Parliament prior to the Moldovan elections earlier this year, President Maia Sandu warned, I quote:

“The Kremlin’s goal is to capture Moldova through the ballot box, to use us against Ukraine, and to turn us into a launchpad for hybrid attacks on the European Union.”

She ended with a powerful reminder of how Europe can remain resilient:

“Europe has endured — by adapting, rebuilding and turning fragility into strength. By protecting fragile democracies until they grew strong. The only way forward is to defend our democracies with teeth – and to defend them together,” she said.

That is precisely the essence of the Council’s New Democratic Pact for Europe.

To strengthen democracy itself — not only against foreign manipulation, but against all the forces that are undermining it from outside and within.

And we are now working on developing practical tools under the Pact’s umbrella to help governments respond to disinformation and manipulation.

These tools build on the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime and our recent Framework Convention on Artificial Intelligence.

The objective is to protect democratic institutions from digital threats, deepfakes, and the systematic distortion of information.

The New Democratic Pact for Europe relies on member states working closely together but involves also a broad consultation process.

In doing so, we must balance individual rights and freedoms, such as the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.

Because these, too, are fundamental to democracy and human rights.

But protecting democracy must never be an excuse for clamping down on political opponents or peaceful activists.

If this happens, democracy is lost and authoritarianism starts to take grow.

Dear friends,

This morning, I gave a talk on Academic Freedom in Strasbourg.

The ten Reykjavik Principles for Democracy reaffirm that academic freedom, institutional autonomy and freedom of expression are cornerstones of any democracy.

But according to the latest Academic Freedom Index, academic freedom has declined significantly in 34 countries over the past decade — including in several established democracies, some in Europe.

We are also seeing cuts to research funding, and scrutiny of so-called “undesirable” fields of study, alongside political interference, censorship and harassment.

But for democracies to thrive, universities and academic institutions, must be places where people can express their reasoned ideas, whether on politics, sciences, or any subject relevant to public life.

Because when spaces for debate disappear, critical voices, whether of academics, journalists or activists, fall silent.

Dear friends,

Writers, journalists, academics, politicians, policymakers, activists and ordinary people, you and me, must be allowed to do their jobs without hindrance and to speak the truth to power.

Elections must be free and fair.

Justice must be done and the principles of rule of law respected, ensuring free and fair trials.

And Europe’s pillars of democracy must not be allowed to crumble.

So how do we give truth the wings it needs to fly and supply Europe with the teeth it needs to defend itself?

We must develop robust responses to both internal and external threats, including corruption, electoral interference, and disinformation.

And we must safeguard media freedom as a cornerstone of a healthy democracy.

In light of our mandate, the Council of Europe has developed a solid legal framework, designed to protect human rights, democracy and the rule of law on this continent.

These include, for example, the Platform for the Protection of Journalism and Safety of Journalists, and the recent Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer.

Education is also key.

We have also taken many initiatives that aim to equip people with the required skills, and critical thinking necessary for engaged citizenship.

But understanding democracy, is crucial to supporting it.

Innovation is also vital to enhancing democratic processes.

We have therefore launched an ambitious programme addressing key areas, such as education, youth participation, civil society, media freedom, AI and human rights, culture and heritage, and anti-corruption efforts.

Dear friends,

After I have now spent 17 years in the service of democracy, human rights and the rule of law, one lesson stands above the rest:

The things we think are safest are often the things we must protect the most.

We assume our rights will hold.

We assume democracy will endure.

We assume peace will last.

But history — and the present — remind us that none of this is guaranteed.

Klaus Kinkel warned that without the rule of law, we risk sliding back into the law of the strongest.

And today, in Ukraine, we see the consequences of letting brute force and aggressive nationalism decide the future.

As a consequence, cities have been destroyed, lives shattered, children abducted and truth suffocated.

But we also see something else.

We see the courage of a people who refuse to give up their freedom.

And a Europe that refuses to let force write the future of our continent.

Thomas Mann said that “war is only a cowardly escape from the problems of peace”.

He was right. We must try find the solutions to the problems of peace, before they transform into war.

That is our responsibility today.

To defend truth, before lies spread unchecked.

To support democracy, before distrust weakens it.

To strengthen peace, before it is broken.

This work will not be quick-fix.

It will certainly not be easy.

But it is call we must respond to — and it is work that we can only do together.

And we owe it to Ukraine.

And we owe it to Europe.

And we owe it to future generations, who will ask whether we stood firm when it mattered the most.

So, as Kinkel urged, let us choose the right path.

The path of law over brute force.

Dignity over fear.

And peace built on justice — and not on giving in to aggressor.

And let us walk that path with the resolve and the determination that this moment demands.

I thank you very much for your attention.