This time it’s official: the Council of Europe will hold its fourth Summit on 16 and 17 May 2023 in Reykjavik.
The announcement was made on Monday 7 November at a joint press conference by the Irish Foreign Minister, Simon Coveney, and the Icelandic Prime Minister, Katrín Jakobsdóttir.
The decision, taken by the Committee of Ministers of the 46 member states of the Council of Europe, was welcomed by the Secretary General, Marija Pejčinović Burić, who sees it as “a unique opportunity to shape the mission of the Organisation in the new European geopolitical architecture” and contribute to “raising Council of Europe visibility in our member states”.
It will therefore be a question of reaffirming democratic values in a Europe violently shaken by the war in Ukraine and its consequences, while clarifying the role of the Council of Europe as the “conscience of Europe”, said Simon Coveney.
“We must continue to ensure that the Council of Europe is fit for purpose to meet current and future challenges”, said Katrín Jakobsdóttir adding that it has a “critical role” to play as the “guardian of human rights, democracy and the Rule of law”. This is in addition to both the European Union and the European Political Community.
The holding of this summit was advocated for by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and reinforced by the conclusions of a group of experts on the future of the Council of Europe, set up under the Irish Presidency.
Everyone is aware that the most difficult thing will be to go beyond a mere exercise in style and achieve tangible results, even though the founding values of the organisation are being called into question in several of its member states.
The task of the Icelandic Presidency will be immense. (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)