Mattarella Says Russia Has Chosen to Be Outside the Rules

Italian President Sergio Mattarella said Wednesday that Russia had deliberately placed itself outside the rules of the international order by invading Ukraine as he addressed the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly in Strasbourg.

“Faced with a Europe that is devastated by the war, no mistake, no uncertainty is possible,” Mattarella said. “With the atrocious invasion of Ukraine, the Russian Federation has chosen to position itself outside the rules it had freely signed up to”. The Council of Europe, which acts as a guardian of human rights, ejected Russia following its attack on Ukraine. Mattarella said that this decision was consistent with the values of the Council of Europe’s statute. He recalled the words of French statesman Robert Schuman, saying “peace cannot be safeguarded without creative efforts proportionate to the dangers that threaten it. “If we pursue common goals, it is not necessary for someone to lose in order to win,” he continues. “We all win together”.