Russia's state authority at federal, regional and local levels has recently become closer to people, Mr. Schwimmer told a press conference in Moscow.
"The structure of the federal authority has become more transparent," the secretary general noted.
Mr. Schwimmer also saw positive changes in the sphere of civil rights' protection. This was achieved by the judicial reform and the introduction of the post of federal ombudsman, he said.
"There is great progress in the sphere of human rights and I see no problems concerning the freedom of speech," the CE secretary general added.
According to him, the meetings with Russian journalists and questions they ask show that there are no problems here.
"Journalists were not afraid to ask critical questions," he stressed.
In his opinion, cooperation between Russia and the Council of Europe played a great role in these changes and led to great successes.
