The enlargement of the Council of Europe and its role

Abstract

The changed political landscape of Europe in 1989 posed the Council of Europe with the challenge to redefining its role. Since then, the Council of Europe has enlarged both its membership and its functions. From a mere ‘club’ of democratic states mainly concerned with the protection of human rights, the Council of Europe converted into a ‘school of democracy’ adopting the mission of building democracy in East and Central Europe. To this end, it has enlarged its membership to include these countries. The unavoidable price of lowered admission criteria will not damage the image and credibility of the organization if the implementation of commitments is given a greater priority by the Council of Europe.