Strasbourg, 19/12/2005 (Agence Europe) - After a debate on 15 December on changes to NGO legislation in Russia (the Russian Duma held its second reading on 16 December), the EP adopted a resolution expressing concern at the mooted restrictions on the right of association. The EP points out that on Moscow's request, the Council of Europe (of which Russia is a member) has drafted a report on the draft legislation's compatibility with the European Convention of Human Rights and that the Russian President, Vladmir Putin, had suggested the draft amendment be completely rehashed. The resolution calls on the Duma to take the necessary time to improve the legislation and for the Austrian Presidency and the Finnish Presidency of the Council of the EU (in 2006) to raise the issues of respect for democracy and human rights at the next EU-Russia summits, to give the EU-Russia human rights dialogue a more prominent role and to further involve the European Parliament in this work. The EP urges Russia to cease politically motivated harassment of NGOs, particularly the Society for Russian-Chechen Friendship and other such groups monitoring the situation in Chechnya.