I am particularly honored to address you at this 120th Session of the Committee of Ministers, which for us is a great day.

At the outset, let me congratulate my Swiss colleague for her outstanding work as the Chairperson of the Committee of Ministers. I will have to make an effort to follow suit.

The Macedonian Government is devoted to the follow-up of the Interlaken process and to the implementation of the commitments that derive from the Declaration and the Action Plan adopted at the Interlaken Conference. The Conference undoubtedly has proven to be a strong impetus for the future engagements in the reform of the European Court of Human Rights.

Improving the effectiveness of this fundamental institution of the Council of Europe has never been more topical and challenging than at this moment. There is no doubt that the activities related to the reform of the Court and the further enhancement and strengthening of the European human rights protection are one of the main priorities facing our Organization. The credibility that the European Court of Human Rights has accumulated over time has obliged us to invest more efforts to address the pressing needs and challenges it faces and to preserve its important role in the European legal construction.

The Macedonian Government appreciates the initiative of the Council of Europe to assist Bosnia and Herzegovina, regarding its constitutional reforms. Having in mind the complex situation in the country, the reform process should be conducted in line with the present realities on the ground and the overall sensitivity of the situation. We will continue to consider the need for a full implementation of the EctHR’s judgments in the Sejdić and Finci case as an issue of great importance. The Council of Europe’s assistance must be focused more on the efforts to facilitate a more comprehensive dialogue in order to find a commonly agreed solution that would be at the same time in line with the standards of the Council of Europe and the recommendations of the Venice Commission. On the other hand, it should not provoke any type of tensions or misunderstandings that could threaten the coherence and the functioning of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In that regard, together with the outgoing Chair, Minister Calmy-Rey, we issued a Joint Declaration on Bosnia and Herzegovina underlining the above mentioned.

We would like to assure you that in the next period, the Council of Europe and the Macedonian Chairmanship will stand ready to provide all types of support that might be needed or demanded by the Bosnian authorities in order to settle the differences and to bring this very important issue to its successful conclusion.

The relations with the EU, is an issue that would be also high on the agenda of our Organization in the following period. As we are all very well aware, the European system for the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms is a unique model in many aspects and has proven to be a source of inspiration for other regional organizations and mechanisms. In this regard, there is no doubt that the accession of the EU to the Convention, which became possible after the Lisbon Treaty entered into force, will complete the foundations of the common European legal area of fundamental rights. This is not only a commitment, but also an obligation, which must be properly addressed. This process will certainly further contribute to the finalization of the historically important process of building a common European human rights space under “one protective umbrella”.

As regards the reform process initiated by the Secretary General, let me stress that the Council of Europe must always demonstrate its full readiness to quickly adapt itself to the modern needs and demands and effectively respond to every challenge that might put in danger in any way our common European space of democracy, solidarity, tolerance, mutual understanding and cooperation. These duties, my Colleagues, certainly derive from our common determination within Council of Europe, to thoroughly reform our Organisation in a way that it should be regarded as a strong, flexible and internationally relevant political giant, rather than a bureaucratic and boring “political dinosaur” that continuously fails to embrace the modern realities (as critics sometimes say).

Our country is prepared to manage the steering of the Committee of Ministers by keeping in mind the interests of all its member states as well as the interests of the Organization as a whole. We have also taken into consideration the issues that are of importance for our region, thus being focused on the common determination to bring our region closer to fully-fledged EU-integration, which cannot be achieved without an effective and sustainable implementation of the Council of Europe’s standards and principles.


Thank you.