In his opening remarks, Commissioner Reynders focused on EU enlargement and rule of law reform in candidate countries. For example, the annual Rule of Law Report, which monitors significant developments across all member states, will also cover accession countries who get up to speed even faster, as announced by President von der Leyen in her latest State of the Union. Regarding cooperation between the EU and the Council of Europe (CoE), he stressed that its relevance is growing swiftly and highlighted the specific cooperation with the Venice Commission, the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) and the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) as fundamental for reform in enlargement countries.

Responding to diverse questions by EU member states, Commissioner Reynders emphasised that the best ways to ensure an efficient cooperation would be through the continuation of the discussions of the accession of the EU to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and the intensification of the exchange of information between the two organisations. As for areas susceptible to increased EU-CoE cooperation, Mr Reynders underlined the media landscape in Europe and the role of civil society organisations.

Finally, with regards to Russia’s brutal, unprovoked and unjustified invasion of Ukraine, Mr Reynders highlighted the EU response, including the seizure of the proceeds of Russian assets. He also recognised the importance of the CoE Register of Damage for Ukraine, the first step towards an international compensation mechanism for victims of the Russian aggression.