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The third Summit of heads of state and of government of the member countries of the Council of Europe was held in Warsaw on 16-17 May. Also present was the delegation of the Holy See headed by Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, Secretary of the Holy See’s Relations with States, who presented a report to the summit of which we quote a long passage below. Europe can only be loved by its citizens, and operate as a factor of peace and of civilization in the world, if it be inspired by some fundamental values: the promotion of the dignity of man and his fundamental rights, including first and foremost the freedom of conscience and of religion; the search for the common good in a spirit of solidarity; and respect for national and cultural identities. Undoubtedly everyone shares these values, but if they are to take on actual form and not remain confined to vague generalities, they need to make reference to the particular history of Europe, because it is that history that has given Europe its spiritual identity… The pre-eminent role that Christianity has had in forming and enriching this heritage cultural, religious and humanistic is well known to everyone and cannot be ignored. Very concrete challenges are posed by the great world problems inherited from the 20th century: the nuclear threat that now risks escaping from the exclusive responsibility of the big powers; the insurgence of political and religious fundamentalism; the great migratory phenomena; and some situations of dangerous instability at the state level, even within Europe: I refer in particular to the situation of Bosnia-Herzegovina and the region of Kosovo, both in need of a secure constitutional system that cannot be achieved without ensuring effective guarantees for the minorities. I would also like to devote some words to the architecture of Europe. A better coordination of the European Organizations is required by what constitutes the creative originality of the European project. The successful outcome of this demands not only an effective functioning of the individual major institutions, but also their balanced synergy to enable European citizens to perceive Europe as their “common home”, at the service of the human person and of society. The experience of the Council of Europe is valuable, because it traces the contours of what could become a project of European society. The over 190 Conventions of the Council of Europe, which deal with education, culture, minorities, refugees, immigration, ecology, means of social communication, etc., cover a considerable part of the sectors of the social dimension. Moreover, the territorial extension assumed by the Council of Europe brings it into contact with the Organization for Cooperation and Security of Europe. The OCSE is distinguished, however, among other things, by its transatlantic dimension, indispensable for the maintenance in peace in a globalized world and for its mandate in the field of conflicts. Of the three forms of European construction delineated in the three fields of OSCE security policy, economic and environmental cooperation and the human dimension it will clearly be this latter that offers the greatest scope for cooperation between the Council of Europe and the OSCE. As regards the European Union, further concrete possibilities for closer institutional collaboration are especially being delineated in the legal sector relating to human rights. The common commitment to the reinforcement of human rights and the legal protection of European citizens also expressed in the willingness of the EU to sign the European Convention for the Safeguard of Human Rights and Fundamental Liberties should find appropriate articulation in the proposals awaited from the Coordination Group set up in December 2004″.
