The PABSEC Participation in the European Conference of Presidents of Parliament, Dublin, 28-29 September 2023
On 28-29 September 2023, in Dublin, upon the invitation of the Irish Parliament, the European Conference of Presidents of Parliament was held under the auspices of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and was attended by more than 60 Speakers or Deputy Speakers of Parliament and around 400 delegates representing partner and observer countries and interparliamentary assemblies.
Among the participants in the Conference were Mr. Ruslan Stefanchuk, PABSEC President, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Mr. Alen Simonyan, Chairman of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, Ms. Sahiba Gafarova, Chairperson of the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Mr. Rosen Zhelyazkov, Chairman of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria, Mr. Shalva Papuashvili, Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia, Mr. Igor Grosu, Chairman of the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova, Mr. Talat Xhaferi, Chairman of the Assembly of the Republic of North Macedonia, Mr. Nicolae Ionel Ciuca, President of the Senate of Romania, Mr. Numan Kurtulmus, Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye, Mr. Ioannis Plakiotakis, Deputy Speaker of the Hellenic Parliament, and Ms. Elvira Kovacs, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia.
Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General, took part in the European Conference of Speakers of Parliament and the Meeting of the Secretaries General of PACE countries and international organizations.
The two-day parliamentary conference focused on three themes: the consequences of the war in Ukraine and the role of national parliaments in Ukraine’s reconstruction, the challenges to representative democracy in volatile times, and equality and diversity in public representation of different groups in parliament.
On 29 September 2023, the Meeting of Secretaries General was held, during which an exchange of views took place on the activities of the European Centre for Parliamentary Research and Documentation and on the priorities for future cooperation within the framework of the PACE.
In his speech at the meeting of the Secretaries General, Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General informed about the activities of the Parliamentary Assembly and emphasized the importance of exchanging views between the Secretaries General on a regular basis. He renewed his proposal to hold the next meeting in Istanbul in 2024.
On the sidelines of the Parliamentary Conference, Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General, met with Mr. Ruslan Stefanchuk, PABSEC President, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, and discussed organizational issues of holding the General Assembly within the framework of the PABSEC Ukrainian Presidency. It was decided to hold the General Assembly in Kyiv on 16-18 November 2023.
During a meeting with Mr. Igor Grosu, Chairman of the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova, the PABSEC Secretary General discussed the results of the Ankara General Assembly, the current activities of the PABSEC and future plans.
During a meeting with Mr. Talat Xhaferi, Chairman of the Assembly of the Republic of Northern Macedonia, the PABSEC Secretary General discussed the role of parliaments in strengthening regional cooperation and the importance of holding PABSEC Committee meetings in member countries on a regular basis.
PABSEC Secretary General Mr. Asaf Hajiyev also had a short meeting with Mr. Sergio Piazzi, Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean, Mr. Bodo Bahr, Secretary General of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference, and Ms. Kristina Hafoss, Secretary General of the Nordic Council, about future cooperation and planned joint events. With Mr. Bodo Bahr, Secretary General of the BSPC, the PABSEC Secretary General, Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, discussed the issues of holding a joint PABSEC-BSPC event on refugee issues with the participation of the Hamburg Parliament and other international organizations.