On 14 May in Luxembourg, the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the 46 Council of Europe member States will hold their annual session, to be preceded on 13 May by the opening for signature of the Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer.
Agenda items will include the role of the Organisation in the new geopolitical context as guardian of democratic security, particularly its action in support of Ukraine and the New Democratic Pact for Europe, and the Council of Europe's work in the area of the environment - following on from the Reykjavík Declaration (adopted at the Summit of Heads of State and Government of 2023). The ministers will also discuss co-operation between the Council of Europe and the European Union.
Other topics to be addressed are the Organisation's work in areas such as the system of the European Convention on Human Rights, social rights, the rights of the child and education, democracy, civil society and youth participation, freedom of expression, safety of journalists, disinformation, the rule of law, norms in the area of digital technology and IA, migration and human trafficking, anti-discrimination measures, gender equality and action to combat violence against women.
The Council of Europe Secretary General, Alain Berset, will present his first Annual report 2025 at the ministerial meeting, entitled "Towards a new Democratic Pact" which coincides with the 75th anniversary of the European Convention on Human Rights. In the current context of multiple crisis, his report calls for refocussing the Council of Europe's action on democratic security.
At the end of the meeting, Luxembourg will hand over the Presidency of the Committee of Ministers to Malta. The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Xavier Bettel, will present a review of the Luxembourg presidency. The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism of Malta, Ian Borg, will outline the priorities of Malta's Presidency for the following six months.
On 13 May, the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer will be opened for signature. This is the first international treaty in this field, designed to respond to increasing reports of infringements of lawyers' rights, whether in the form of harassment, threats or assault, or of interference in the exercise of the profession.
