Approving its opinion based on a report by Yuliia Ovchynnykova (ALDE, Ukraine), the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe welcomed the draft Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of the Environment through Criminal Law—set to become the first international legally binding instrument to address environmental crime. The Assembly praised the draft’s emphasis on prevention and its broad coverage of punishable offences, while also urging stronger protections and broader application.
Under the procedure for the drafting of a Council of Europe treaty, the Parliamentary Assembly must give its opinion before a new convention is adopted by the organisation’s executive body, the Committee of Ministers. The draft Convention is due to be submitted to the Committee of Ministers for adoption on 14 May 2025, as part of a broader environmental package.
