Proposal for a second summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe

Proposal for a second summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe

Communication from the Committee of Ministers

Doc. 7732
21 January 1997

Reply to Recommendation 1303 (1996)
adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 15 January 1997 at the 581st meeting of the Ministers' Deputies

1. The Committee of Ministers has taken note with great interest of Recommendation 1303 (1996) "on the proposal for a second summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe". It wishes the Assembly to know that it brought this Recommendation to the attention of the governments and, after having included it in the file of the Deputies' Ad Hoc Working Party on the proposal for a second summit, resumed consideration of this question when that Working Party (whose mandate expired with the adoption of its final report by the Deputies at their 575 bis meeting on 22 October 1996) had concluded its work, and in the light of the conclusions of the Committee of Ministers' 99th Session.

2. The penultimate paragraph of the final communiqu� of the 99th Session reads: "The Ministers noted that the plan to hold a second summit, raised at their previous Session, had aroused wide support and that the Parliamentary Assembly had unanimously taken a position in its favour, recommending that it be held in the second half of 1997. Its holding could help to foster the sense of a common European identity, on the basis of shared values, and promote the cohesion of the continent as a whole. In this context, the Ministers welcomed the statement by the French delegation that France would be happy to organise the second summit during the French chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers. They instructed their Deputies to report to their 100th Session on the state of preparations."

3. In response to the political impetus provided by the Ministers, the French authorities have confirmed that France intends to convene the second Summit of Council of Europe Heads of State and Government in Strasbourg on 10 and 11 October 1997. The Committee of Ministers expresses its satisfaction and its gratitude to the President of the French Republic for this invitation, which meets the Assembly's request in paragraph 4 of Recommendation 1303.

4. Concerning paragraphs 1 to 3, the Committee of Ministers agrees with the Assembly that the major developments which have taken place since the Vienna Summit and the new challenges which the Council of Europe faces today mean that the Organisation now needs a political impetus on the highest level. In this connection, the Committee of Ministers notes that the Strasbourg Summit will take place after the summit of OSCE Heads of State and Government (Lisbon, 2-3 December 1996), the end of the European Union's Inter-governmental Conference and the NATO Summit (Madrid, 8-9 July 1997).

5. Concerning paragraph 5, the Committee of Ministers has taken note with great interest of the Assembly's proposals on items for inclusion in the draft declaration which is to be submitted to the Heads of State and Government. It is unable, at present, to reply to these proposals in detail, since preparatory work for the Summit has just begun. It none the less wishes to bring the following points to the Assembly's attention:

a. The second Summit should focus on the central aims laid down for the Council of Europe in its Statute, which remain those of the enlarged Council (pluralist democracy, the rule of law, respect for and promotion of human rights), and consider how further action in areas where the Organisation has acknowledged expertise or a specific contribution to make, can help to promote democratic security in Europe. The Committee considers that the Summit's success will depend on avoiding fragmentation in the preparatory work and focusing on essentials;

b. Reviewing the implementation of the Vienna Summit Declaration is a continuing concern for the Council of Europe and should therefore not be made a specific topic for the Summit. In this connection, the Committee of Ministers wishes the Assembly to know that, in response to the appeal issued on this question by the Ministers at their 99th Session, the Deputies decided, at their 578th meeting (18-20 November 1996), to include on the agenda for all their Human Rights meetings an item dealing with progress made concerning ratification of:

the European Convention on Human Rights by States which have not yet done so (these states being required to ratify both the Convention and Protocol No. 11);
Protocol No. 11 to the European Convention on Human Rights by States party to the Convention which have not yet ratified this Protocol;

c. Similarly, institutional questions could be examined in the perspective of the follow-up to the Summit, in the light of the decisions taken at it and of the enlarged Council of Europe's place and role in the new Europe;

d. Given the international context in which the second Summit is being held, special attention should be paid to co-operation between the Council of Europe and the other organisations on the European institutional scene, particularly the OSCE and the European Union. Concerning the latter, the Committee of Ministers is happy to inform the Assembly that relations between the Council and the European Union have recently progressed significantly, in particular with the signing, on 5 November 1996, of a new exchange of letters between the President of the Commission and the Secretary General of the Council, and the specific mention of the Council of Europe's role contained in the conclusions of the Presidency at the European Council in Dublin (13-14 December 1996): "The European Council believes that the Council of Europe has a crucial role in upholding human rights standards and supporting pluralist democracy. It sees advantage in using to the fullest, in cooperation with other international institutions, the expertise and mechanisms of the Council of Europe to advance these objectives. The summit meeting of the Organisation, in 1997, will provide a significant opportunity to review the progress made in these areas."

6. Concerning, finally, the current phase of preparation of the Summit, the Committee of Ministers welcomes the setting-up of an Ad Hoc Committee on the second Summit by the Assembly's Bureau. The Ministers' Deputies will work out with the Assembly and its Ad Hoc Committee how dialogue between both sides can be most useful. In accordance with the terms of reference given to them at the Committee of Ministers' 99th Session, the Deputies will report to the 100th Session (5-6 May 1997) on progress made with preparation of the Summit, so that the Ministers can determine its theme and agenda at that session.

7. The Committee of Ministers has decided to include Recommendation 1303 and the present reply among the reference documents for preparation of the Summit.