The secretary general of the Council of Europe considered the 50 years of Portuguese participation in that body, which will be completed in 2026, as “an achievement” for Portugal, highlighting the “strong cooperation” and joint defense of the Rule of Law.
“After 50 years, let’s go back to 1976, an important moment for Portugal after years and decades of really difficult situations with democracy and development”, he recalled, in an interview with Lusa, Alain Bersetwhich this week he made his first official visit to Lisbon as Secretary General of the Council of Europe (COE, its acronym in English).
“We are very proud to be working with Portugal all these years. (…) Half a century is an achievement for Portugal and the Council of Europe together”he stated.
The former president of Switzerland (2018 and 2021) highlighted that Portugal and the body he heads, the oldest European institution, have “very strong cooperation”.
“We are very proud and happy to have Portugal’s strong support in the main values we defend: democracy, the rule of law and the protection of human rights”these Berset.
Furthermore, he recalled, Lisbon hosts the North-South Center, a Council of Europe body created in 1989 to promote dialogue.
The Democratic Republic of Congo is the latest member of the North-South Centersaid Berset, who considered it possible for countries that abandoned this organization years ago to return, such as France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland, Ireland, Iceland, Norway, Slovenia, Sweden and Switzerland, which already belonged to the organization.
Asked about what the Council of Europe is doing to encourage the return of these countries, Alain Berset announced that France has already confirmed that it will rejoin the Center.
“The countries that left the Center are now observing how important it is, and, interestingly, some of them are returning”, commented the official.
Berset believes that France’s return “could create a positive movement for the Center-South”.
“Witnessing what is happening in the world, it is clear to everyone that we need not only to be coherent among ourselves, in Europe, but also to have a strong and structured collaboration and platform for dialogues with other countries and continents, and the North-South Center is exactly dedicated to that”, he maintained.
The North-South Center’s member states are Algeria, Andorra, Azerbaijan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cape Verde, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Holy See, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Montenegro, Morocco, Portugal, Democratic Republic of Congo, Romania, Serbia, Spain and Tunisia.
Founded on May 5, 1949, The Council of Europe is the oldest functioning European institution, and currently has 46 member states, including all the countries that form the European Union.
The organization expelled Russia in March 2022, following the invasion of Ukraine.
Alain Berset was in Lisbon this week for an official visit, his first since assuming leadership of the Council of Europe, in September 2024.
The secretary general held meetings with the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, the president of the Assembly of the Republic, José Pedro Aguiar-Branco, and the Minister of State and Foreign Affairs, Paulo Rangel.
Berset also participated in the 30th Center North-South award ceremony, in the Portuguese parliament, which this year distinguished the deputy secretary-general of the United Nations and high representative of the UN for the Alliance of Civilizations, Miguel Ángel Moratinos, and the initiative that allowed refugee athletes to participate in the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
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