Chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt made a report on the first working day of PACE summer session.
He said his organization has always kept the situation in the Caucasus in focus. “Elections in this region were held with some violations, which should be addressed to secure a democratic election process,” he said.
Mr. Bildt said the Council of Europe attaches a fundamental importance to the territorial integrity of Georgia. “There is no doubt that Abkhazia will be granted wide autonomy status in future, but the territorial integrity of Georgia should not be questioned.”
Asked by Azerbaijani MP Ganira Pashayeva, “why the Council of Europe doesn’t urge Armenia to meet its commitment to withdraw its forces from the Azerbaijani territories”, Mr. Bildt said the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement process is beyond the CoE’s competence.
“The recent presidential meeting in St. Petersburg proved that the talks are going on. I possess no information about the outcomes but we should support any meeting which can promote resolution of the conflict,” he said, the Azeri Press Agency reports.
