The Spring Session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe will end today with a vote on the Draft Resolution on drug-resistant tuberculosis in Europe and the Draft Resolution on the protection and integration of migrant children through compulsory education.

During the previous four days of sessions, the deputies exchanged views on the position of journalists in Europe and the protection of editorial integrity, confiscation of illegal assets as means of combating corruption, legal challenges related to hybrid war, climate change and the implementation of the Paris Agreement, and the right to derogation from the provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights in the event of a state of emergency. The Spring Session also included discussions on the humanitarian needs of internally displaced persons, prevention of terrorist groups funding, the situation in Libya, as well as Europe's role in peace-making initiatives in Syria.

Special interest was triggered by a debate on the report of the Independent Investigation Body on the allegations of corruption within the Parliamentary Assembly as well as a discussion on the recently adopted Copenhagen Declaration dealing with the reform of the European system of human rights protection.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Denmark Mr Anders Samuelsen, in his capacity as the Chairman of the Committee of Ministers, informed the MPs about the activities carried out during the six-month Danish Presidency, which focused primarily on the European system of human rights protection, the rights of persons with disabilities, equal opportunities, youth inclusion in democracy and the fight against torture. Secretary General of the Council of Europe Mr Thorbjørn Jagland answered numerous questions posed by MPs, while Minister of Foreign Affairs of Macedonia Mr Nikola Dimitrov, during his address to the Parliamentary Assembly, pointed out his country's progress achieved in overcoming the political crisis and the process of European integration.

On day two of the Session, the Parliamentary Assembly elected Ms Ivana Jelić as a new judge from Montenegro to the European Court of Human Rights.