Addressing the Parliamentary Assembly in Strasbourg on Thursday, 1st October, in a twenty-minute address, Prince Albert II used Monaco’s first-ever presidency of the Committee of Ministers to defend international law.
Marking twenty years since Monaco joined the organisation, the Prince explained that small nations rely on shared rules rather than raw power.
Signing the Golden Book
Upon his arrival at the Palais de l’Europe, Prince Albert II met with Petra Bayr, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). Continuing an enduring diplomatic tradition reserved for visiting heads of state and monarchs, the Prince inscribed his signature and a personal testament into the institution’s official guestbook – the historic Livre d’Or. He wrote:
“On the occasion of Monaco’s first presidency of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, I thank the President of the Parliamentary Assembly for her welcome and reaffirm the Principality of Monaco’s unwavering commitment to the defense of multilateralism, international law, and the rule of law. May I also take this opportunity to recall the importance of environmental issues, which constitute the essential foundation for the objective framework of fundamental rights.”
A unique model of harmony and openness
Opening his address by highlighting the principality’s internal foundations, the Prince pointed to Monaco’s constitutional monarchy, its advanced social protections, and a society blending over 140 nationalities where nationals live alongside a vibrant global community. Stressing the everyday contributions of tens of thousands of foreign workers, tourists, and international investors, Prince Albert II highlighted that Monaco’s success is a testament to the power of dialogue, mutual welcome, and openness to the world.
Upholding the rule of law and confronting crisis
Reflecting on a Europe navigating deep political fractures, the Prince positioned the European Convention on Human Rights and the Strasbourg Court as indispensable safeguards for the continent’s seven hundred million citizens—explicitly including Monaco’s ten thousand nationals and forty thousand residents. Warning that the multilateral system collapses if individual states ignore their commitments or judicial rulings, he firmly stressed Monaco’s absolute condemnation of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. “We cannot accept a system where international law is violated without consequence”, the Prince said, praising the Council of Europe’s creation of accountability frameworks like the damage register and the path toward a special tribunal.
Climate action as a fundamental right
Shifting focus to planetary survival, the address linked ecological collapse directly to the erosion of human rights. Drawing on Monaco’s century-and-a-half tradition of marine research and the work of his own environmental foundation, Prince Albert II stressed that climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss respect no borders and demand unified, science-led cooperation.
“Protecting nature is guaranteeing the very conditions in which the rights we defend today can be exercised tomorrow,” Prince Albert II said.
A shared destiny for Europe
Concluding his address, the Prince urged member states to reject isolationism and power politics in order to confront modern technological, environmental, and geopolitical threats together. As the principality steers its historic presidency, Monaco’s message to Strasbourg remained resolute: preserving multilateralism is not just a diplomatic choice, but an urgent, shared destiny.
Monaco Life is in Strasbourg with the Prince and the Monaco delegation. See more below…
View this post on Instagram
Stay updated with Monaco Life: sign up for our free newsletter, listen to our podcasts on Spotify, and follow us across Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Tik Tok.
Prince Albert II speaking at the Parliamentary Assembly in Strasbourg. Photo credit: Manuel Vitali