Cooperation between the Committee of the Regions and the Congress of Local
and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe
The European Union and the Council of Europe as the two biggest international
organisations on the European continent do not only have an overlapping
membership structure with 27 of the 47 member states of the Council of Europe
are at the same time members of the European Union, they also have common goals.
Both seek to achieve greater unity between the states of Europe through respect
for the shared values of pluralist democracy, the rule of law, human rights and
fundamental freedoms as well as through pan-European cooperation, thus promoting
democratic stability and security to which European societies and citizens
aspire.
Therefore the European Union and the Council of Europe cooperate in many
areas of joint interest and this cooperation comprises also the various
institutions of both organisations. Also in the Council of Europe, there is one
institution that represents the local and regional level: the Congress of Local
and Regional Authorities. Like the Committee of the Regions it is a political
assembly composed of representatives holding an electoral mandate on the local
or regional level.
Cooperation between the CoR and the Congress started soon after the CoR was
established in 1994 and increased ever since. In 2005 a Cooperation Agreement
was signed to have a legal framework in which further cooperation could
develop.
Today a "Contact Group" made up of six politicians from each institution
meets twice a year to discuss issues of joint interest and to perform a steering
function with regard to the overall cooperation between both institutions. There
are various joint activities between the CoR commissions and the respective
committees within the Congress as well as joint action with regard to
communication. Furthermore the Presidents and Secretaries General of CoR and
Congress meet on a regular basis.
Cooperation between the European Union and the Council of Europe is likely to
increase further in the years to come. On the basis of a report on the relations
between both organisations, presented by Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker in
April 2006, the European Union and the Council of Europe signed a Memorandum of
Understanding in May 2007 to strengthen their partnership.
To find out more:
Composition
of the CoR-Congress Contact Group
Memorandum
of Understanding between the European Union and the Council of Europe
Report
by Prime Minister Juncker
Speeches given by CoR President Luc Van den Brande at the Congress Plenary
Session - Speech
VdB Congress 27-05-2008 -
Speech VdB Congress 03-03-2009
Speech
given by Congress President Halvdan Skard at the CoR Bureau meeting (November
2007)
Speech
given by CoR Secretary General Gerhard Stahl at the Congress (November 2007)
Minutes
of the last meeting of the Contact Group
Link to the Congress
website