The ad hoc committee of PACE hosted the first session, where MPs discussed changing rules and procedures of the Assembly. Russian delegates were also spotted there – in spite the fact that Russia left the Assembly. Besides, the session was held behind the closed doors. Ukrainian MP and the delegate from Ukraine in the assembly Oleksiy Honcharenko told this 112 Ukraine TV channel.
‘When the session began, secretariat members came to us and asked our delegation leader to stay. The rest were asked to stay away from the hall. We objected, saying it was an open session, but they told us they decided to keep it closed. We will look into what happened… We saw PACE members hugging and talking to Russian parliamentarians Kosachev and Tolstoy. There was Agramunt, their former president, the Russian proxy. Many other so-called ‘free democrats’ were there, too,’ he said.
According to Honcharenko, this event is a test for reaction of the Ukrainian delegation. ‘They are trying us to see the reaction of our colleagues, the reaction to Russians and any of their statements. It is a first step to restore Russian delegation’s membership at PACE,’ he said.
