"Together we must stand firm for Ukraine and international law. Over the 70 years of the existence of the Council of Europe, it has been an outstanding, standard-setting body in areas such as human rights, the rule of law, and democracy. Unfortunately, today the authority of the Council of Europe and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is in jeopardy. The illegal annexation of Crimea, the armed conflict in Donbas, the occupation of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the flagrant violations of the freedom of speech and assembly, and the persecution of human rights activists are issues the avoidance of which undermines the public trust in the Council of Europe and the values for which it stands," said Speaker Ināra Mūrniece, addressing the audience at the European Conference of Presidents of Parliaments of the member states of the Council of Europe.