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Resolution 2132 (2016)
Political consequences of the Russian aggression in Ukraine
1. More than two years after the outbreak
of the Russian aggression in Ukraine, the Parliamentary Assembly
is deeply concerned about its political consequences both for Ukraine
itself and for the overall stability and security in Europe.
2. For Ukraine, the conflict has resulted in the violation of
its sovereignty and territorial integrity. This started, in the
aftermath of the Euromaidan, with the illegal annexation of Crimea
by the Russian Federation and has continued with Russia’s support
for separatists in eastern Ukraine and its growing role in the ongoing conflict.
Since mid-April 2014, more than 9 300 people have been killed, more
than 21 500 people have been injured and almost one-and-a-half million
people have left their homes as a result of the conflict. Hundreds
are being held captive or are reported missing.
3. The Assembly reaffirms its commitment to the principle of
peaceful settlement of disputes and to the independence, sovereignty
and territorial integrity of Ukraine, within its internationally
recognised borders.
4. As regards Crimea, the Assembly reiterates its condemnation
of the illegal annexation of the peninsula and its continuing integration
into the Russian Federation, in breach of international law and
the Statute of the Council of Europe (ETS No. 1). It regrets that,
despite the continuing refusal of the international community to recognise
Crimea’s annexation by the Russian Federation and the application
of various types of sanctions against the Russian Federation and
Russian citizens, not only has the annexation not been reversed,
but the human rights situation in the peninsula continues to deteriorate.
In particular, the Assembly:
4.1. condemns
the illegal Duma elections held on 18 September in occupied Crimea
and considers their results null and void. The incorporation of
Ukrainian sovereign territory into Russian federal constituencies
and the creation of four single-member constituencies are blunt
violations of international law and effectively compromise the legitimacy
of the Russian Parliament;
4.2. is deeply concerned about actions against critical media
outlets, acts of intimidation and harassment against opponents,
cases of disappearances and threats of abduction and the repression of
persons belonging to minorities, in particular the Crimean Tatars,
in the application of the law on extremism;
4.3. considers the banning of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar
People, declared to be “an extremist organisation”, to be a harsh
repressive measure targeting the whole Crimean Tatar community and
calls for this measure to be reversed;
4.4. calls for full and unrestricted access to the Crimean
Peninsula for all human rights bodies of the Council of Europe in
order for them to carry out their monitoring activities unimpeded
and in accordance with their mandates;
4.5. calls on the Russian authorities to reverse the illegal
annexation of Crimea and allow Ukraine to regain control of the
peninsula.
5. As regards the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine, the Assembly
is deeply concerned about the continuing violations of the ceasefire,
in breach of the Minsk Agreements and the Package of Measures for their
Implementation of February 2015. The escalation of violence along
the contact line in Donbas has resulted in the movement of positions
of the two sides closer to the contact line and in an increase in
the number of civilian casualties caused by shelling. The Assembly
also regrets increasing violations of weapon withdrawal commitments
and restrictions on the freedom of movement of the Special Monitoring
Mission of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
(OSCE).
6. The Assembly reiterates its support for a peaceful solution
to the conflict and for the Minsk process. It calls once again for:
6.1. the Russian Federation to withdraw
its troops from the territory of Ukraine and stop providing the separatists
with military supplies
6.2. all sides to implement, responsibly and in good faith,
the commitments undertaken under the Minsk Agreements and the Package
of Measures for their Implementation, starting with full respect
for the ceasefire.
7. The Assembly regrets that, against a security situation that
has deteriorated and in the absence of a sustainable ceasefire,
there has been no progress in the implementation of the political
aspects of the Package of Measures for the Implementation of the
Minsk Agreements.
8. As regards, in particular, the issue of local elections to
be organised in Donbas, the Assembly underlines that for such elections
to be in line with Ukrainian legislation and international standards
on free and fair elections there is a need to ensure: an improved
security environment, with full access for the OSCE Special Monitoring
Mission throughout the entire territory of Donbas, with the border
sealed and controlled by the Special Monitoring Mission following
the complete withdrawal of Russian troops, mercenaries and weapons, and
safe storage of weapons under international supervision; that all
Ukrainian parties have the opportunity to participate in the elections
and for Ukrainian media to broadcast in Donbas during the campaign;
respect for the right of people from Donbas who are internally displaced
in Ukraine or have sought asylum in the Russian Federation to take
part in the vote.
9. The Assembly welcomes the release of one of its members, Ms Nadiia
Savchenko, after repeated calls by the international community,
including more recently in Assembly Resolution 2112 (2016) on the humanitarian
concerns with regard to people captured during the war in Ukraine.
It also welcomes the release of Mr Yuri Soloshenko, Mr Gennady Afanasyev
and of other prisoners. These releases are not only important humanitarian
gestures, but also offer an opportunity to build trust between the
sides in the conflict and provide the Minsk process with positive
momentum. The Assembly reiterates its call for the release of all
captured persons in line with Resolution
2112 (2016).
10. The Assembly joins the Council of Europe Commissioner for
Human Rights in his call to ensure accountability for serious human
rights violations committed during the conflict as a key to the
reconciliation process. Perpetrators of grave crimes, such as unlawful
killings, enforced disappearances and torture on both sides of the
contact line, must be brought to account.
11. Only a democratic Ukraine with stable, efficient and accountable
institutions, a pluralist political environment and free media,
following through at last with the promises of the Euromaidan to
reform a corrupt and oligarchic system, will be a strong and prosperous
Ukraine, capable of stopping external aggression and restoring peace.
Therefore, the Assembly:
11.1. deeply
concerned to observe the regular pressure imposed on political opposition
and independent media, calls on the Ukrainian authorities to follow
international democratic standards, including media pluralism and
the existence of independent political opposition;
11.2. calls on the Ukrainian authorities to establish a national
dialogue and to improve relations between different ethnic, linguistic
and religious groups in Ukrainian society;
11.3. while welcoming the adoption of constitutional amendments
on the judiciary, urges the Ukrainian authorities to effectively
implement the new measures, resolutely combat all forms of corruption, including
at the highest political level, ensure the effective functioning
of the newly established anti-corruption institutions and further
pursue reforms, including the constitutional reform on decentralisation;
11.4. calls on the Ukrainian authorities to consider positively
the call of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice
Commission) to implement its recommendations on the lustration law and
to ensure further reforms in line with European standards;
11.5. calls on the Ukrainian authorities to ensure that the
investigations and proceedings related to the violent incidents
during the Euromaidan demonstrations, as well as to the tragic events
in Odessa in May 2014, are accelerated and carried out impartially
so as to deliver justice and enhance public confidence in the criminal
justice system, in line also with the recommendations by the International
Advisory Panel set up by the Secretary General of the Council of
Europe;
11.6. welcomes the intensified support that the Council of Europe
offers to Ukraine, notably through the Council of Europe Action
Plan 2015-2017, and calls on member States to consider offering
further funding, including through voluntary contributions.
12. Beyond Ukraine, the Assembly regrets that the conflict and
the Russian Federation’s actions in this respect have undermined
the overall stability and security on our continent as well as the
advancement towards a strategic partnership with the Russian Federation
over the last few decades. The European Union should also draw its
own lessons and reflect upon strategies for the future of the region
which will de-escalate the current tensions and help to rebuild
confidence in its neighbourhood.
13. Concerning the economic consequences of the conflict, the
Assembly notes that they are considerable not only for Ukraine itself
and for the Russian Federation, but also for the European Union
and several European countries which have been affected to varying
but significant degrees by the sanctions against the Russian Federation
and Russian counter-sanctions. The debate over sanctions divides
the European Union and threatens its cohesion. However, international
pressure, including sanctions, must be maintained until the Russian
aggression has ceased and the sovereignty and territorial integrity
of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders has been
fully restored.
14. The Assembly urges Council of Europe member States to do everything
in their power to support the peace process in Ukraine so as to
avoid a further escalation of violence, with dangerous consequences
for civilians living in the conflict area, or the development into
a “frozen” or “semi-frozen” conflict, prolonging instability and
insecurity in Ukraine and the whole of Europe.
15. For its part, the Assembly could serve as a unique platform
for dialogue and interparliamentary co-operation and make a positive
contribution to the peaceful solution of the conflict, notably by
helping to build confidence. It regrets that it has so far been
unable to play its natural role of parliamentary diplomacy, mainly due
to the fact that Russian parliamentarians have not participated
in its activities for two consecutive years and have ceased co-operation
with the Assembly's monitoring procedure. Regardless of the divergences
on the origin of the crisis, the Assembly reiterates its call for
the Russian authorities to implement the demands of the Assembly
formulated in Resolution
1990 (2014) on the reconsideration on substantive grounds
of the previously ratified credentials of the Russian delegation, Resolution 2034 (2015) on
the challenge, on substantive grounds, of the still unratified credentials
of the delegation of the Russian Federation, and Resolution 2063 (2015) on
the consideration of the annulment of the previously ratified credentials
of the delegation of the Russian Federation (follow-up to paragraph
16 of Resolution 2034
(2015)), and resolves that only significant and measurable
progress towards their implementation can form the basis for the
restoration of a fully fledged, mutually respectful dialogue with
the Assembly.
16. The Assembly resolves to continue to follow closely the political
and humanitarian consequences of the conflict in Ukraine as well
the human rights and rule of law-related challenges it raises in
areas under or outside Ukrainian Government control and to consider
these issues at its October 2017 part-session, provided there is no
emergency requiring that it be done sooner.