Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov focused on the current crisis unfolding in Europe and Azerbaijan's priority of chairmanship at the Committee of Ministers Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).

He addressed the PACE autumn session as the chairman of the Committee of Ministers of PACE in Strasbourg, France on October 2.

Speaking about the crisis in Ukraine, Mammadyarov said the situation in this country remains at the heart of the current concerns of all Council of Europe bodies.

He noted that the Committee of Ministers has recently adopted a set of important decisions on the situation in Ukraine that intended firstly to reiterate a number of fundamental principles of international law, in particular the peaceful settlement of disputes and the necessity of respecting states' territorial integrity. He added that they also aim to foster the emergence of a peaceful and sustainable solution to the conflict.

"The Committee of Ministers also sought to provide political support for the efforts made to resolve the crisis: it gave a clear brief to the Secretary General to continue to assist the Ukrainian authorities in carrying out their reforms, and notably in preparing the parliamentary elections to take place on 26 October. The holding of free and fair elections, in line with international standards throughout the territory of Ukraine, will be an important step in consolidating the democratic progress made by that country and in resolving the conflict. I am pleased to see that your Assembly has decided to send an observer mission and make its own contribution to the smooth running of the elections," Mammadyarov said.

He said the Committee of Ministers will continue to closely monitor developments in Ukraine.

Mammadyarov noted that after handing over the chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers to Belgium on November 13, Azerbaijan will continue to implement its priorities.

He further said the adoption of the convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions by the Committee of Ministers last July is a source of great satisfaction for the Azerbaijani Chairmanship.

This convention is very much in keeping with the Council of Europe's long-standing commitment to sporting ethics. It is also a contribution to the fight against corruption, which is one of Azerbaijan's main priorities. I hope that the convention, which is open to both member and non-member states, will quickly secure the number of ratifications required for its entry into force. We would wish this could take place before the 2015 European Games in Baku, which have served as one of the reasons of our consistent support to the adoption of this important legal framework," Mammadyarov said.

He stressed that the selection of Baku as one of the cities to host the UEFA Euro 2020 matches will definitely encourage Azerbaijan to continue the promotion of this convention well beyond its chairmanship tenure.

Fight against corruption

Mammadyarov further mentioned a conference on international standards and national experiences in the fight against corruption organized in Baku on 30 June - 1 July, together with GRECO and the International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA).

"Three dedicated plenary sessions allowed for profound exchange of views on a variety of issues like the implementation of anti-corruption legislation and its role in increasing of the efficiency of the judicial-legal system, fighting corruption through education, preventive measures against corruption, economic development and fight against corruption, international cooperation between specialized anti-corruption agencies, protection of participants of the criminal process during the investigation of corruption crimes. The participants had the chance to learn about the success stories and challenges of individual countries," he said.

Noting that the conference can be viewed as a good example of the Council of Europe - IACA interaction in the field of fight against corruption, Mammadyarov said the decision taken by the IACA to hold its third assembly next month in Baku is the logical outcome of this successful chairmanship event.

He further said another important event, which Azerbaijan organized within its chairmanship agenda was the international conference on "Public service delivery in the context of human rights and good governance" last week in Baku.

"It's worth noting this particular topic was addressed by the Council of Europe for the first time. The event allowed participants to get acquainted with the work of successful models of individual countries, including Azerbaijani State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations - ASAN Service - which, had been hailed by Secretary General Jagland during his April visit to Azerbaijan, as a unique model to be benefited by many European countries. One of the important messages coming out of the discussions was the proposal of the Azerbaijani side to establish an international association of public service delivery agencies as a platform to exchange best practices. We hope that this proposal will be followed up duly," Mammadyarov said.

Consolidation of culturally diverse societies

Mammadyarov also mentioned the first Council of Europe platform exchange on culture and digitization entitled "Creating an enabling environment for digital culture and for empowering citizens" held in Baku early July 2014 as part of the follow-up to the 10th Conference of European Ministers of Culture held in Moscow in April 2013.

"Discussions placed a special focus on the impact of digitization on culture, transition from the pre-digital to the digital era, needs of the cultural sector and its actors, as regards access to, creation and dissemination of cultural content, empowerment of citizens and creation of enabling environment for digital culture. It was important to note that the platform meeting highlighted the potential place and the role of the Council of Europe as an appropriate forum for drafting common standards and mechanisms that could further strengthen cooperation in this field. Within this context, relevant policy guidelines will be developed soon," Mammadyarov said.

Strengthening intercultural and interreligious dialogue

Mammadyarov said the next important event under Azerbaijan's chairmanship priority is the Council of Europe 2014 Exchange on the religious dimension of intercultural dialogue held in Baku in September.

"The Parliamentary Assembly also contributed to this event through highlighting the role of the Assembly in strengthening intercultural and interreligious dialogue. The theme of the exchange, "Intercultural dialogue: interaction between culture and religion", led to a rich and lively debate. Participants highlighted the role of religions and non-religious convictions in combating discrimination and intolerance. Important references were made to preservation and protection of cultural and religious heritage as one of the integral elements of people's identity and essential resource for peaceful coexistence. The latest edition of Exchange in Baku in our view once again testified to the importance of this platform as a valuable Forum and gave rise to proposals regarding the future prospects for the exchanges. The Committee of Ministers will examine the conclusions of the 2014 Exchange in the weeks ahead," he said.

Mammadyarov also spoke about the 4th session of the Baku Humanitarian Forum that kicked off in Baku on October 2, adding that forum is an annual gathering of famous representatives of political scientific and cultural elite of the world including famous statesmen, Nobel Prize winners in the various fields of science and leaders of international organizations.

He said although this event was not included into the list of Azerbaijani chairmanship events, it will certainly contribute to country's chairmanship priority dealing with the consolidation of culturally diverse societies.

Dealing with social cohesion

Mammadyarov said under Azerbaijan's chairmanship priority dealing with social cohesion, the country has organized a conference to review the Council of Europe Social Cohesion Strategy and Action Plan in Baku on 10-11 September.

"This conference provided an excellent opportunity to take stock of the progress achieved since the adoption of these important instruments in 2010. It also served as a platform for tackling important themes such as social cohesion and European social model in times of economic crisis, diversity in European societies, current and future challenges for more inclusive societies," the minister said.

Education and protection for young people

He further noted that within its next chairmanship priority, Azerbaijan also sets great store by education and protection for young people. He said the Council of Europe campaign to stop sexual violence against children, launched in 2010, has been enjoying considerable success, adding that it is widely appreciated and provides an effective tool for combating one of the worst kinds of violation of children's rights.

"As a result, the Ministers' Deputies decided, last July, to extend the "One in five" campaign for one year, until the end of 2015. Besides protecting the physical and psychological integrity of children, more efforts must also be made towards young people, particularly to involve them more in decision-making. I am pleased to see, therefore, that the next World Forum for Democracy to be staged here in Strasbourg, on 3 to 5 November, will look at ways of engaging young people in rethinking the democratic arenas of today, including via the new technologies," Mammadyarov said.

He reminded that Azerbaijan will host the United Nations Global Forum on youth policies at the end of October in Baku with the institutional support of the Council of Europe.

Cooperation with international organizations

Highlighting a high-level conference on the neighborhood policy, to be held in Baku on 7-8 November, Mammadyarov expressed hope that assembly will be able to participate in and contribute to this major event marking Azerbaijan's chairmanship.

He said for its part, the Committee of Ministers is currently considering arrangements for a reinforced partnership with a number of countries covered by the neighborhood policy for the period 2015-2017.

Mammdyarov further noted that Azerbaijan has always been supportive of strengthening synergy and partnership between UN and regional organizations. "In this context, we would like to emphasize the importance and relevance of the traditional resolution on cooperation between the UN and the Council of Europe which we expect to be adopted by consensus by the UN General Assembly. Azerbaijan will be privileged to conduct the negotiations on this draft resolution this year as the current chairman of the Committee of Ministers," he said.

Speaking about cooperation between OSCE and the Council of Europe, Mammadyarov said the co-operation between the two organizations in the fight against terrorism and trafficking in human beings will be on the agenda of the next meeting of the Coordination Group to be held in Vienna on 31 October.