STRASBOURG (Sputnik) Daria Chernyshova — The newly-elected president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) will positively affect the relations between the Assembly and Moscow, a French delegate to PACE told Sputnik on Monday.
Earlier in the day, Pedro Agramunt from Spain was elected PACE president for a one-year term, which could be renewed for the same period.
"I think he will have a good impact," Thierry Mariani said, in answer to a question on the future of ties between Moscow and PACE under a new president.
He added that the number of PACE representatives who support Russia is growing.
A PACE resolution in April 2014 deprived the Russian delegation of its voting rights, after Crimea became a part of Russia. Russian lawmakers were barred from participating in PACE's three key bodies — its bureau, presidential committee and standing committee. The 2014 resolution curbing Russia’s rights in the Assembly was prolonged a year later.
Last week, speaker of Russia's lower house of parliament Sergei Naryshkin said Russia would not participate in the upcoming winter PACE session and would not present its credentials for renewal. The decision also means Russia's credentials cannot be challenged in the body, which had previously imposed sanctions on the work of the Moscow delegates.
