I would like to convey my best wishes for a prosperous and successful year 2024 – the year of the 75th anniversary of the Council of Europe and of the 30th anniversary of its Congress of Local and Regional Authorities.
We are beginning this year with enormous challenges facing our democracies, our cities and regions – the Russian Federation’s war of aggression against Ukraine, climate change, issues related to migration, socio-economic problems and polarisation of our societies. These challenges remind us of the need to redouble our efforts for upholding democratic values in our communities and for strengthening democracy, human rights and the rule of law on the European continent.
The year 2024 will be the year of the implementation of decisions of the Council of Europe’s Reykjavik Summit, which gave a strong mandate to the Congress for mobilising action at local and regional level to contribute to the Council of Europe’s mission. Let us all rise to this challenge.
