Léon Gloden, Luxembourg's Minister of the Interior, addressed on 26 March 2025 the 48th session of the Congress on behalf of his country’s Presidency of the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers.
Presenting the Presidency’s priorities, he underlined that Europe must “reaffirm its commitment to local and regional democracy”, and highlighted the essential role of local elected representatives across the continent, who work every day to bring democracy to life in their municipalities. ‘A people's Europe is built at local and regional level’, he stressed.
The role of local and regional elected representatives is particularly important in the context of the profound geopolitical upheavals and war that the European continent is facing, continued Minister Gloden. “In the face of the many challenges we face, we must not forget that a strong local democracy is the best bulwark against the democratic erosion,” he said, concluding that, in this context, the Congress of the Council of Europe was “truly the democratic weapon of our continent”.
Luxembourg Presidency of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe
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