Russia withdraws from the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities

On August 1, 2024, Russia withdrew from the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, which it signed in 1996 in Strasbourg, France.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs published the relevant withdrawal document on August 14.

Earlier, Russian leader Vladimir Putin signed a law denouncing the Council of Europe's Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. Russia explained the need to terminate the convention by the fact that the resolution of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe of September 27, 2022, significantly limited the powers of the Russian expert in the Advisory Committee established to monitor the implementation by the states parties to the convention of their obligations to protect national minorities.

In addition, Russia, according to pro-Kremlin publications, has lost the ability to monitor internationally cases of violations of the rights of certain categories of citizens. We are talking about the Russian-speaking population abroad.

Russian lawyer Ilya Rusyaev told Izvestia that the rights and freedoms of national minorities in Russia are still protected under the Russian Constitution. The Constitution is the highest law in the country. Its effect is higher than any international laws, Russia explained.

Author - Dmitriy Levchenko, 15/08/2024