Council of Europe resumes work with high-level meeting in Monaco
Monaco has hosted the latest meeting of the Council of Europe’s Ministers’ Deputies as part of the Principality’s six-month Presidency of the organisation’s Committee of Ministers.
Ambassadors and Permanent Representatives from the Council of Europe’s 46 member States gathered at the Oceanographic Museum on Wednesday 2 September for the 1567th meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies, marking the resumption of their work following the summer break.
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The meeting, which would normally take place at the Council of Europe’s headquarters in Strasbourg, was chaired by Monaco’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the organisation, Gabriel Revel.
It opened with an address from Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Isabelle Berro-Amadeï, who currently chairs the Committee of Ministers.
In her speech, Berro-Amadeï highlighted the challenges facing Europe, from Russia’s continuing aggression against Ukraine to wildfires, record temperatures and hybrid threats.
She called for renewed determination and cooperation between member States as discussions resumed.
Council of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset was also in Monaco for the meeting.
Discussions reflected several of the priorities pursued during Monaco’s Presidency, including tackling information manipulation and foreign interference, migration, money laundering and strengthening accountability mechanisms linked to the war in Ukraine.
The programme also included a special debate on the environmental crisis through the lens of human rights, reflecting Monaco’s longstanding focus on climate change, biodiversity and environmental protection.
Experts from the Oceanographic Institute contributed to discussions on the scientific, legal and political challenges involved.
Berro-Amadeï also stressed the importance of maintaining dialogue between European countries despite their differences, arguing that debate remains valuable when countries are working towards common solutions to shared challenges.
The meeting forms part of Monaco’s Presidency of the Committee of Ministers, which began in May and continues until November.
The next major event will see Prince Albert II travel to Strasbourg at the end of September to take part in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.