HE Mr Rémi Mortier, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Monaco to the Council of Europe, accompanied by his Deputy, represented the Principality at the 128th Ministerial Session of the Council of Europe, held on May 17 and 18 in Elsinore, Denmark.

This high-level annual meeting brought together Ministers of Foreign Affairs and senior representatives of the Organisation’s 47 member states to discuss how to promote respect for fundamental rights and freedoms, to ensure the long-term effectiveness of the European Convention on Human Rights and the strengthening of democratic security in a Europe facing multiple challenges.

Despite the crises that plague the continent and the many threats to the rule of law, the Secretary-General recalled the fundamental objective of the Organisation, which is to strengthen unity and enable the effective implementation of human rights on a European scale. He urged States to consolidate the achievements of the Council of Europe and to give it, on the eve of its 70th anniversary to be celebrated in 2019, a mandate adapted to current circumstances.

In his own speech, the Ambassador reaffirmed the political and financial support of the Prince’s Government for the Council of Europe. He also praised the Organisation’s flagship role as a platform for inter-state dialogue and cooperation aimed at ensuring the effective protection of the human rights of over 800 million European citizens, in particular through the European Court of Human Rights.

During the meeting, the Ministers also adopted a Protocol of Amendment which updates the Convention on the protection of personal data, in order to adapt the only international legally binding instrument of global scope to the challenges posed by the use of new technologies, information and communication.