Russia makes progress in consultations with PACE

Russia is satisfied with the outcome of consultations with the PACE Presidential Committee, the Deputy Speaker of the lower house of Russian parliament Pyotr Tolstoy said.

The speaker believes a step in right direction was taken. "I am confident that the readiness for dialogue from both the PACE and the Russian delegation is the right signal to continue developing the bilateral dialogue," Sputnik cited Tolstoy as saying.

Russia’s Federation Council has received an invitation from the Presidential Committee of the PACE to participate in the December 14 meeting where the future of the Council of Europe will be discussed.

PACE stripped the Russian delegation of its voting rights and participation in the work of its three key bodies amid the 2014 crisis in Ukraine and Crimea's reunification with Russia. The Russian delegation left PACE in 2015 and did not renew its credentials ahead of the assembly's 2016 and 2017 winter sessions.