The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe confirmed the credentials of the Russian delegation at a plenary meeting.
The decision to approve the full credentials of the Russian delegation was expected by all sober-minded delegations at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, said Sergei Kislyak, First Deputy Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee at the Federation Council.
Such a decision received a majority of votes at the PACE plenary meeting the day before. Earlier, Latvian representatives attempted to challenge the Russian delegation’s credentials, but on 28 January, the PACE Committee advised approving them in full.
“From our contacts with colleagues from the Assembly, we can see how bored they become with the obsessive anti-Russian campaign. And the actions of our opponents, who tried to do everything to prevent us from working effectively here, was not a surprise either for us or for other delegations to PACE. Common sense prevailed, although compromise language was adopted,” said Sergei Kislyak. “Despite some difficult aspects of our relations with Western partners, the decision ensures Russian parliamentarians can work normally at PACE,” underscored the senator.
According to Sergei Kislyak, any other decision that would curtail the powers of our delegation would be unacceptable for Russia. “Without us, this organisation would have lost its weight and authority.”
He also added that given PACE’s nature, there would be a lot of challenges. “However, we are absolutely not afraid to discuss these issues, because we are sure that we are doing everything correctly. We are here to protect the interests of our citizens and their constitutional rights.”
The senator also emphasised that the day before, PACE deputies elected Deputy Speaker of the State Duma and head of the Russian parliamentary delegation to PACE Pyotr Tolstoy as Vice President of the Assembly.
“Despite the attempts of some forces to oppose this decision, it was predictably right. It gives our delegation the opportunity to work at PACE effectively,” Kislyak said.