The Serbian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has sent an appeal to the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Theodoros Roussopoulos, objecting to the resolution adopted by the Assembly against the Azerbaijani delegation.

Azernews presents the appeal:

"Your Excellency,

We are writing to you in connection with the recent unfortunate events in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, as a result of which the credentials of the delegation of the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan were challenged and a resolution was adopted to refuse their ratification.

Unfortunately, the delegation of the Republic of Serbia could not participate in the voting on this resolution due to the ongoing process of formation of our National Assembly after the parliamentary elections in the country on December 17, 2023.

Nevertheless, the delegation of Serbia hereby wishes to express its disagreement with the attitude towards the delegation of Azerbaijan and the resolution adopted on highly questionable grounds. We are deeply convinced that this resolution is a step backwards from genuine dialogue within PACE, only contributing to the ongoing polarisation. It is also an illustration of the deepening degradation of values in the Assembly.

The delegation of Serbia to PACE hereby strongly objects to the adopted resolution and calls for its revision in order to prevent negative consequences for the reputation and perceived role of our Assembly and the Council of Europe as such.

Challenging the credentials of the Azerbaijani parliamentary delegation makes it impossible to engage with Azerbaijan within PACE, leading to the potential loss of even more opportunities for cooperation with that country within the broader framework of the Council of Europe, with its rich tapestry of different bodies and mechanisms for cooperation and fulfilment of obligations.

Such a situation runs counter to the very fundamental purpose of this body, which is to serve as a platform for dialogue and the implementation of our respective commitments. It is also a serious blow to the reputation of the Assembly and the Council of Europe as a whole, as well as a disregard for the spirit of cooperation that they uphold. Moreover, it leads to distancing the Council from issues related to the South Caucasus region, including those directly related to the organization's mandate, which cannot be considered in its interests.

Emphasising once again the exceptional importance of maintaining a genuine dialogue and interaction with all PACE members, the delegation of Serbia requests you to act decisively and annul the resolution on non-ratification of the credentials of the delegation of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Biljana Pantic Pilja, Head of Delegation

Dubravka Filipovski

Elvira Kovac

Dunja Simonovic Bratic

Stefan Jovanovic

Jelena Zaric Kovacevic

Aleksandar Markovic".