Russia should be encouraged to resume dialogue - deputy FM

Russia should receive signals that, if it takes certain steps, it can count on a resumption of dialogue, Deputy Foreign Minister Szymon Szynkowski vel Sek said on Tuesday, commenting on the Council of Europe's decision to restore Russia's voting rights. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg on Monday night voted in favour of restoring Russia's voting rights, five years after they were stripped as a result of the annexation of Crimea in 2014. The assembly voted 118 in favor and 62 against, with 10 abstentions. Monday's vote was a result of a May 17 meeting in Helsinki of the council's ministers who adopted a declaration that said "all member states should be entitled to participate on an equal basis" in the council's Committee of Ministers and Parliamentary Assembly.