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Russia-PACE Relations

Russian MP points to failed attempts to tarnish Russia’s image at PACE hearing

The Committee’s closed-door hearing on Russia took place earlier on Tuesday as part of work on a survey report on Russia’s implementation of its obligations towards the Council of Europe

© Mikhail Japaridze/TASS

STRASBOURG, October 1. /TASS/. Russian opposition activists failed to impose a politicized view of the situation in Russia on the Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Chairman of the Russian State Duma (the lower house of parliament) Foreign Affairs Committee Leonid Slutsky told reporters, adding that PACE rapporteurs would visit Russia later in the month to make an unbiased assessment of the situation.

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According to him, the Committee’s closed-door hearing on Russia took place earlier on Tuesday as part of work on a survey report on Russia’s implementation of its obligations towards the Council of Europe. "It was initiated by Commission Chairperson Roger Gale (Great Britain) and had a provocative goal of demonstrating the allegedly dire situation of Russia’s civil society and human rights implementation," Slutsky explained. "However, I would like to make it clear right away: these attempts failed," he added.

"The Committee had invited Russian experts to attend the hearing, including Alexei Navalny’s associate Leonid Volkov, Yabloko Party Chairperson Emilia Slabunova, opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza, and lawyer for the Memorial Human Rights Center Tatiana Glushkova," the senior lawmaker went on to say. He noted that they had used tough rhetoric to present a politicized view of developments in Russia.

The hearing involved Slutsky and Russian senator Sergei Kislyak, who are part of the country’s delegation to PACE.

"Together, we succeeded in rebutting their allegations, pointing out that the so-called experts represented a rather narrow segment of the civil society and did not reflect the interests of the majority of voters. This is what the results of all recent election campaigns in Russia show," Slutsky emphasized.

He specified that "many of the hearing’s participants agreed that the Monitoring Committee’s rapporteurs who are expected to visit Russia later in October should establish the true picture." "We are ready to receive them more than once and provide them with an opportunity to thoroughly explore Russian realities," the senior MP noted.

"This is why Russia’s delegation has returned to PACE. The European public should learn about events in our country from sources other than a funhouse mirror," Slutsky concluded.

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