On Wednesday 13 November, the Council of Europe and the Lithuanian government signed an agreement to establish the Council of Europe “Information Point” for Belarusian People in Vilnius.
“This is an important contribution to our support for Belarusian democratic forces and civil society. The ‘Information Point’ will not only provide information about the Council of Europe and its work. It is a sign of hope for all those who strive for democratic values”, said Secretary General Alain Berset.
Lithuania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gabrielius Landsbergis, said he was “convinced” that this “Information Point” would “play a pivotal role in raising awareness and strengthening capacity in the area of human rights, democracy and the rule of law in order to build a future democratic and prosperous Belarus”.
Announced as one of the priorities of the Lithuanian presidency of the Committee of Ministers (which ended on 13 November), the “Information Point” will support the activities carried out in Lithuania under the action plan concluded by the contact group between the Council of Europe and Belarusian democratic forces.
This structure was created by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe in September 2022 and its importance was confirmed in the declaration adopted by the heads of state and government at the end of the Reykjavik Summit in May 2023.
Link to the agreement: https://aeur.eu/f/eac (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)