Ávarp á þingi Evrópuráðsins í Strassborg

Thank you, Mr. President, 

Madam Secretary General,

Madam Secretary General of the Assembly,

Distinguished Parliamentarians,

It is an honour and a pleasure to address you today. 

We are in the final stages of the Icelandic Presidency of the Council of Europe. In only three weeks, European Heads of State and Government will gather in Reykjavík at the Council’s fourth Summit since its establishment.

The past year has been turbulent and in many ways traumatic. And Iceland's presidency has been a busy time, not least for our small team in Strasbourg, consisting of three diplomats and two supporting staff.

However, it is my firm belief that strength can come in small packages and being few in numbers makes it imperative to focus resources and count on teamwork and support to get things done.

So today, I want to express my gratitude to you Madam Secretary General, to the secretariat of the Committee of Ministers, to the Assembly, and to you Mr. Kox and your secretariat for the excellent collaboration we have had during our term in the presidency.

In approaching the many challenges that we face, we have enjoyed genuine team-spirit and a strong sense of urgency in making things happen for the cause that we all share.

And let us not deceive ourselves.

These are turbulent times. The events of the past few years and then upcoming years - along with our responses - will have great consequences for a long time.

These are serious times that demand much from all of us who have decided to shoulder responsibility in our societies.

These are times that demand more leadership and less politics. More responsibility and less complacency. More courage and less comfort.

These are times of decisions.

It is an overused analogy to state that at such times we stand at a crossroads. But as it is with many clichés - it is appropriate because it contains so much truth. But in reality, every day consists of many decisions that can lead to different outcomes. So in a sense we are perpetually at crossroads of some sort and just like in one of those movies about time travel, the future is shaped in different ways based on the decisions we make at each turn.

But the difficult decisions are not always the biggest ones. Decisions that seem small at first can have great consequences. And by the same token, decisions that seem monumental initially can eventually turn out to have very little impact.

When I think of the past few years - I come to the conclusion that there have been many crossroads that we, as societies, have gone through and often without considering the consequences we have chosen the path of least resistance. We have chosen comfort over courage. We have chosen complacency over responsibility.

When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 - the right path to take seemed obvious to most of us. This body - the parliamentary assembly of the Council of Europe - acted decisively as befits the conscious of Europe.

So, when we came to the crossroads in February 2022 the choice was clear. But this has not always been the case.

When Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, the Western response was different and much weaker. Various sanctions were certainly passed – in fact some right here in this Assembly. But the overall sentiment was one of complacency rather than responsibility.

Many may have thought that it didn't matter which path to take. The options perhaps seemed confusing. Should economic relations continue to be developed in the hope that common interests would make further conflict unthinkable? Or should there be a line drawn in the sand with economic sacrifices made to show commitment to international law?

In retrospect, it can be said that the crossroads in 2014 were even more fateful than the ones we stood at a year ago.

Or perhaps the most decisive choice was made at the crossroads in 2008, when Russia invaded Georgia to annex South Ossetia? Could we have influenced the development of world affairs if the international community had fully understood Putin's intentions back then?

Were we at the biggest crossroads when the Skripals were poisoned in 2018?

How about when Mikael Khodorkovsky was imprisoned in 2004 and it became obvious that the rule of law in Russia had collapsed? Or when the journalist Anna Politskaya was murdered in 2006? Or when the members of Pussy Riot were imprisoned in 2012 for chanting in a church an appeal to Mary the Mother of God to excommunicate Putin?

Should the total destruction of Grozny at the turn of the century have given the West sufficient clues as to the direction of Putin's Russia?

Should we, in retrospect, have understood that at each of these crossroads, there was a chance to take a path that would lead to a better outcome than we now face in Ukraine?

This kind of "what if" speculation is, of course, primarily academic mental gymnastics.  But in order for us to learn from the past, we need to reflect on it.

The war in Ukraine is of course at the top of our minds right now. But it can be argued that this war is in fact a horrific manifestation of a widespread and long-lasting conflict about the kind of world we want to live in.

At present, may of us are worried that the system based on liberal democracy and human rights is under strain. Within Europe, reactionary forces on the right and left have gained ground. In poorer regions of the world, the public perceives an international system based on these values to be a Western import intended to serve Western interests.

Of course, this is not the case. All UN and Council of Europe member states have committed themselves to adhere to a set of international law, including human rights law. Some countries were among the founding members of these organizations; others went to great lengths to fight for their independence and sovereignty based on these laws and fought for their rights to join these organizations, taking on both the rights and the responsibilities that come with being an independent member state of the Council of Europe and the United Nations.

The fact is that societies based on liberal democracy and respect for the rights of the individual have created the greatest human welfare and economic prosperity in human history.

These values are worth fighting for – and that is the context against which Iceland assumed the Presidency of the Council of Europe.

Esteemed parliamentarians.

During our Presidency – which is Iceland’s third presidency since we joined the organisation in 1950 – we have therefore maintained a strong focus on the Council of Europe’s core principles – human rights, democracy and the rule of law.          

Our point of departure was that in times of democratic backsliding and rising authoritarianism, there was an urgent need to return to our fundamental principles and the framework that has underpinned human rights, democracy, and rule of law on our continent. 

This is especially important now, as we are faced with Russia´s brutal aggression against Ukraine, which so blatantly violates everything this organization stands for and has clearly marked our work.  

During our Presidency, we have also prioritised the rights of children and youth, equality, and the environment. 

Every child has the right to grow to adulthood in health, peace, and dignity and it is imperative for all States to ensure the rights of children. They are our future. 

Iceland has put a special focus on child-centred policy making through integrated services and protection systems for children.  In November, the Icelandic Minister for Education and Children visited the Council of Europe to promote Barnahús – or Children’s house – the Icelandic model of a child-friendly, interdisciplinary, and multi-agency response centre for child sexual abuse.

I would like to thank the Secretary General for joining our call for the establishment of children’s houses in more Council of Europe Member States.

In March, Iceland hosted the annual meeting of the Steering Committee for the Rights of the Child where our Minister for Education and Children also hosted a conference on integrated child protection systems to combat violence against children and provide children with access to services.

The Icelandic Minister for Education and Children also came to Strasbourg last week to launch the guidelines “Turning 18 with Confidence: supporting migrant and refugee children transitioning to adulthood.”

We have also emphasised the importance of meaningful youth engagement in the Council´s work. Last February, I was pleased to participate in a meeting on young people and climate change here in Strasbourg, organised with the Council of Europe’s Youth department.

Gender equality and the protection of the hard-earned progress concerning the human rights of women and girls around the world is a strong priority for Iceland – at home and abroad. 

During our presidency, we gave special attention to action against gender-based violence online and on the importance of engaging men and boys in driving gender equality.

Last December, the President of Iceland participated in a conference in Strasbourg on online digital violence and later this week, he will address a conference on the role of men and boys in combating gender-based violence. 

We also organised two side events during the 67th session of the Commission on the Status of Women at the UN in New York in March. One was organised with the Council’s Gender Equality Division and focused on migrant women. The other, in cooperation with other Nordic Countries, focused on online gender-based violence. 

The Icelandic presidency has likewise given a focus to the urgent need to promote and protect the rights of LGBTI individuals. 

In January, the Prime Minister of Iceland participated in a conference on advancing these human rights and tonight, we are hosting a reception celebrating human rights defenders on the occasion of Lesbian Visibility Week. You are welcome to join us. I will be there.

Iceland is also proud to host this year’s IDAHOT+ Forum in Reykjavik, the week before the Summit. It will bring together governments, activists, civil society, and other stakeholders to assess the progress of LGBTI rights in Europe.

Last, but not least, we have sought to highlight the important inter-relationship between human rights and the environment. 

In the beginning of May, the Ielandic presidency will convene a conference on the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment in practice – which is held in conjunction with the meeting of the Drafting Group on Human Rights and Environment. 

Consultations with other Council of Europe bodies, especially the Parliamentary Assembly, have been high on the Icelandic Presidency´s agenda. 

Parliamentary oversight is crucial to a well-functioning democracy and this Assembly serves this important role within our organisation. 

In the lead up to the Summit, the Icelandic Presidency has been fully cognizant of the importance of close consultations with the Assembly, and we thank your Secretariat for the good collaboration.

The Prime Minister and I, as well as the Permanence Secretary of State, have been honoured and pleased to have the opportunity to engage with the Assembly during Iceland’s presidency. Myself at the Standing Committee in Reykjavík in November, the Prime Minister of at the January session, and the Permanent Secretary at a meeting of the Standing Committee in the Hague in early March. 

We have also placed significant importance on cooperation with other international organisations.  In January, I presented the priorities of our presidency to the Permanent Council of the OSCE in Vienna and yesterday, I briefed the Foreign Affairs Council of the EU on the preparations for the Summit.  

Mr President

There has been one issue that has – without a doubt – made its mark on the Icelandic Presidency: Russia´s full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine. 

The immediate reaction of the Council of Europe to Russia’s brutal aggression was to expel Russia. This was a reaction that spoke loud and clear and stated that there would be no business-as-usual. Not even close.

While it was the right decision to make, it was also sad to see that a state that once aspired to become a part of a democratic and just Europe, had violated such fundamental international and human rights law that we were forced to expel them. It was also sad to remove the protection provided to Russian citizens under the European Court of Human Rights and the wider set of agreements.

Support and solidarity with Ukraine have become one of the main priorities of our Presidency and we have worked hard to ensure that the outcome of the Reykjavík Summit in May further strengthens our collective resolve. 

Reflecting this, there is a clear focus on Ukraine, both in the Summit´s agenda and the outcome document – in particular when it comes to holding Russia accountable for its atrocities. 

In February, Iceland, in close cooperation with Ukraine, put a draft decision to the Committee of Ministers to take the first step towards setting up a Council of Europe register of damages.

A Register, under the auspices of the Council of Europe, but with broad support of leading world nations, would be a historic occasion for our organisation – but most importantly an important step towards accountability for crimes committed in this brutal war and a strong message of support to Ukraine. I thank this body for its solidarity in the efforts to make this happen.

I hope I can count on your help in gathering support for the Enlarged Partial Agreement from your governments. 

Dear friends.

As you well know, Kosovo applied for membership of the Council of Europe in May last year. 

During our Presidency we have been in close contact with the Kosovar and Serbian governments and consulted widely with other member states. 

Based on these consultations, yesterday the membership application of Kosovo was referred to this Assembly for substantive discussions. It is now up to you to recommend the next steps.

Before concluding, I am happy to report that preparations for the Summit are going very well.

We enter these last three remaining weeks very positive about what is around the corner but aware of this important task that we have been entrusted with.

At the Summit, we have a choice to unite around the Council’s core principles and reaffirm our common commitment to the values that have proven to be such a blessing for the people of the world.

This Assembly had been calling for a Council of Europe Summit for a long time. I am very grateful for the close cooperation of the Assembly and its Secretariat over the past months and am looking forward to participating in the Standing Committee meeting planned in Reykjavik, the day before the Summit.

Now, our job is to make it count.

Regarding the substance, from the get-go, the goal of the Icelandic Presidency has been to help deliver concrete results from the Summit that will have real and lasting positive impact for the citizens of Europe.

We are grateful for the valuable input of the Assembly to the substantive work of the Summit, which was incorporated into the draft outcome document of the Summit prepared by the Icelandic Presidency.

We also considered suggestions from the High-Level Reflection Group and consultations with a range of stakeholders, including Council of Europe bodies, international organisations, youth representatives, and civil society. 

The Presidency also held an open call for suggestions – a first in the history of the Council of Europe – where any interested organisation or citizen could participate. 

The final outcome will depend on negotiations between Member States but we are confident that the Reykjavík Declaration will make a difference for our organisation and for our citizens.

We want the Summit to reach the people of Europe and create more visibility and interest in our Organisation. In line with that the opening session and the general debate will be broadcast live. 

Dear friends.

In the past year we have seen full-scale war in Europe. 

But we have also seen the power of multilateralism.  

Europe has come together, in a unique way, in sanctioning the invader, in offering support to Ukraine, and standing together in defence of our shared values. 

We, in the Council of Europe, still believe in international law and the rules-based order.  

What is more the people of Ukraine still believe in international law and the rules-based order.  

We have seen in the past year that people are ready to die for democracy and freedom – things that we have taken for granted for far too long.  

Because, values matter.  

I started my statement by reflecting on the crossroads we – as individuals and societies - are faced with every day.

In the movies about time travel, every twist and every turn has the potential to have tremendous consequences. But that is fiction. It is only for fun.

But for us, in real life - our decisions at any one of those twists and t urn really matter. We have a duty to take our role seriously.

I would like to believe that the lesson to draw from all these crossroads of the past few years is that instead of looking passively at the ground and choosing the path that looks more convenient or financially profitable in the short term, we should look up, and be guided by our purpose that we choose the direction that our higher ideals compel us to.

We should ask ourselves what is best for human rights, democracy and the rule of law? And that should be the road we choose.

At every crossroads we should ask ourselves, what is best for international law and multilateralism? And we choose the path that defends those institutions.

We should be careful that the pursuit of narrow national self-interest does not lead us to places of common suffering.

In this regards, this Assembly plays a key role, bringing together diverse opinions and political standpoints but in unity around our core values. 

We must never tire of advocating for democracy, human rights and the rule of law, and a peace that is based on justice.

That has been the goal of the Icelandic Presidency and we are grateful to have had the opportunity to contribute.

I look forward to your questions. 

Thank you.