Written declaration No. 626 | Doc. 14258 | 26 January 2017

On the admissibility of attending the CIS Inter-Parliamentary Assembly events (Saint Petersburg, 27-28 March 2017) by members of the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy

Signatories: Mr Volodymyr ARIEV, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Boryslav BEREZA, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Ms Iryna GERASHCHENKO, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Valeriu GHILETCHI, Republic of Moldova, EPP/CD ; Mr Vladyslav GOLUB, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Oleksii GONCHARENKO, Ukraine, EC ; Mr Ihor HUZ, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Ms Mariia IONOVA, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Giorgi KANDELAKI, Georgia, EPP/CD ; Mr Serhii KIRAL, Ukraine, EC ; Mr Georgii LOGVYNSKYI, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Andrii LOPUSHANSKYI, Ukraine, ALDE ; Mr Andriy LOZOVOY, Ukraine, NR ; Mr Ján MAROSZ, Slovak Republic, EC ; Mr Jarosław OBREMSKI, Poland, EC ; Mr Paul SCULLY, United Kingdom, EC ; Mr Serhiy SOBOLEV, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Ms Olena SOTNYK, Ukraine, ALDE ; Mr Kostiantyn USOV, Ukraine, NR ; Mr Egidijus VAREIKIS, Lithuania, EPP/CD ; Mr Viktor VOVK, Ukraine, EC ; Mr Leonid YEMETS, Ukraine, EPP/CD

This written declaration commits only those who have signed it.

Russia is occupying Crimea, is continuing the occupation of Donbas and terrorist activities in Syria; has failed to comply with any of the numerous Parliamentary Assembly resolutions on stopping its aggression against Ukraine, has held illegal elections in the annexed Crimea, and has banned dozens of Assembly members from entering Russia. Moreover the FSB has detained Russian lawyer, Mr Nikolay Polozov, for interrogation following his return from the current part-session.

The Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy is attempting to renew co-operation with the aggressor country via an ad hoc sub-committee to visit Russia at the invitation of the Chairperson of the Federation Council, Ms Valentina Matvienko, who is on the European Union sanctions list.

We deem it inadmissible to disguise the participation of Assembly members in CIS events as attending an international conference organised jointly with the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly.

We believe that dialogue is essential to Assembly activities. However, in the Russian case, priority should be given to the restoration of trust through complying with the Assembly resolutions, freeing hostages and ensuring a ceasefire on Ukraine’s occupied territory.