The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) confirmed Zsolt Németh, chairman of the Parliament's foreign affairs committee, as vice-president on Monday. The Fidesz representative has held this position since 2016.
In his statement to MTI, Zsolt Németh also stated that the specialized committees of the general assembly have been reconstituted, and that he will also hold the position of president of the political committee for the next one year. The Dutch socialist politician Tiny Kox again elected as the president of PACE
Zsolt Németh also said that after 18 years, the fourth ET summit will be held on May 15 and 16 this year, after the organization recently called for another meeting in view of the war in Ukraine. As he said, the most important topic of the meeting will be how the Council of Europe can play a role in solving the problems caused by the war in the changed international environment, and how it can better adapt to the "pan-European reality". He added that it is also important to consult on the division of labor that ET should cooperate with the European Union, especially in the field of protecting national minorities, where "creating democratic security is a common task."
The representative drew attention to the fact that in terms of Ukraine's EU accession process, great emphasis must be placed on the fulfillment of minority protection standards, which are also required by the Copenhagen criteria for membership. He emphasized that a country that does not ensure the protection of minority rights cannot become an EU member. In relation to the proposal that special international tribunals should be established to investigate the war crimes of the Russian regime, Zsolt Németh stated: Since the beginning of the war, Hungary has been of the position that war crimes cannot go unpunished. It is a legal technical question as to what kind of institutional framework this will take place.
(Note: The Council of Europe is not the same as the European Council of the EU organization, i.e. it is not an institution of the Union. While the EU has 27 countries, the ET has 47 countries. )
Source: MTI
(Header image: Parliament press office )
