Russia excluded from Council of Europe

Moscow: Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said on Friday that the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe decided to exclude Russia from the organization.

Earlier in the day, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said the committee launched the procedure to halt Russian membership in the Council of Europe.

“The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, chaired by Italy, decided to exclude Russia from its ranks, guided by Article 8 of the statute. Italy believes that this is a necessary measure in light of Russia’s unacceptable military aggression against Ukraine, which constitutes a serious violation of international law,” Di Maio was quoted as saying by the askanews news outlet.