<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail-b-material__header" style="margin:0px 0px 25px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;font-size:16px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica,Arial"><h1 class="gmail-b-material__title" style="margin:0px 45px 15px 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;font-size:30px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;overflow:visible;line-height:1.2;color:rgb(26,26,27)">Moscow will raise Russian language issue if returns to PACE</h1><div class="gmail-b-material__info" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;font-size:12px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;font-weight:bold;color:rgb(169,169,169)"><div class="gmail-b-material__category" style="margin:0px 15px 7px 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;font-size:13px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;display:inline-block"><a href="http://tass.com/politics" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;color:inherit;text-decoration-line:none">Russian Politics & Diplomacy</a></div><span class="gmail-b-material__date" style="margin:0px 9px 0px 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;display:inline-block">May 31, 14:19</span><span class="gmail-b-material__time" style="margin:0px 9px 0px 0px;padding:0px 5px 0px 16px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:url("/i/b-time.png") 0px 0px no-repeat transparent;display:inline-block">UTC+3</span><br><h2 class="gmail-b-material__preview" style="margin:0px;padding:15px 0px 0px;border:0px;outline:0px;font-size:13px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);line-height:20px">Chairman of the Federation Council Foreign Affairs Committee Konstantin Kosachev mentioned Russia's relations with Ukraine and the Baltics in this regard, as "they have been reduced to the minimum"</h2><div class="gmail-b-social-buttons" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;clear:both;zoom:1"><div class="gmail-sharewrapper" style="margin:30px 0px 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent"><div class="gmail-sharewrapper__title gmail-ng-scope" style="margin:0px 0px 12px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;font-size:14px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;line-height:7px;color:rgb(0,0,0)">Share</div><div class="gmail-share gmail-ng-scope" style="padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;font-size:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent"><div class="gmail-sharebutton gmail-sharebutton_fb gmail-ng-scope" type="fb" style="margin:0px 0px 10px 10px;padding:0px 10px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:top;background:url("/images/socials/fb.svg") 50% 50%/6px 13px no-repeat rgb(58,85,159);display:inline-block;height:30px;line-height:30px;width:30px;color:rgb(255,255,255);border-radius:2px;box-sizing:border-box;text-align:right"><span class="gmail-sharebutton__count gmail-ng-binding" style="margin:0px 0px 0px 28px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;font-size:12px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;line-height:30px"></span></div><div class="gmail-sharebutton gmail-sharebutton_vk gmail-ng-scope" type="vk" style="margin:0px 0px 10px 10px;padding:0px 10px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:top;background:url("/images/socials/vk.svg") 50% 50%/13px 8px no-repeat rgb(68,103,141);display:inline-block;height:30px;line-height:30px;width:30px;color:rgb(255,255,255);border-radius:2px;box-sizing:border-box;text-align:right"><span class="gmail-sharebutton__count gmail-ng-binding" style="margin:0px 0px 0px 28px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;font-size:12px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;line-height:30px"></span></div><div class="gmail-sharebutton gmail-sharebutton_tw gmail-ng-scope" type="tw" style="margin:0px 0px 10px 10px;padding:0px 10px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:top;background:url("/images/socials/tw.svg") 10px 50%/12px 10px no-repeat rgb(80,171,241);display:inline-block;height:30px;line-height:30px;width:30px;color:rgb(255,255,255);border-radius:2px;box-sizing:border-box;text-align:right"><span class="gmail-sharebutton__count gmail-ng-binding" style="margin:0px 0px 0px 28px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;font-size:12px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;line-height:30px"></span></div><div class="gmail-sharewrapper-ext" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:top;background:transparent;display:inline-block"><div class="gmail-sharewrapper-ext__inner" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent"><div class="gmail-sharebutton gmail-sharebutton_ok gmail-ng-scope" type="ok" style="margin:0px 0px 10px 10px;padding:0px 10px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:top;background:url("/images/socials/ok.svg") 10px 50%/10px 16px no-repeat rgb(242,114,12);display:inline-block;height:30px;line-height:30px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x;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;line-height:1.6">"As for the policy towards the Russian language in some countries, we need to know if attempts to prevent its use and hinder Russian-language education have become part of those countries’ policies. It they have, it will certainly influence our bilateral relations with those countries," the senior Russian senator pointed out.</p><p style="margin:0px;padding:0px 0px 10px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;line-height:1.6">In this regard, Kosachev mentioned Ukraine and the Baltic states. "Let us assess the current state of Russia’s relations with these countries. They have been reduced to the minimum, which particularly affects trade and economic projects. There is no doubt about that," he said.</p><p style="margin:0px;padding:0px 0px 10px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;line-height:1.6">The senator pointed out that Russia raised the issue on all international platforms where it was active. "In particular, regular discussions of the issue take place within the OSCE and the Council of Europe. If and when Russia’s delegation resumes its activities in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, we will definitely bring this issue up once again and try to make sure that it remains in the organization’s focus," Kosachev emphasized.</p><div class="gmail-b-material-text__adv-video" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent"><div id="gmail-inpage_VI-237383-0" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent"></div><div class="gmail-nr-player" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent"></div></div><h2 style="margin:0px;padding:0px 0px 10px;border:0px;outline:0px;font-size:17px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;line-height:28px">Russia and the Council of Europe</h2><p style="margin:0px;padding:0px 0px 10px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;line-height:1.6">Following Crimea’s 2014 reunification with Russia, the country’s delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) was stripped of its key rights, including the right to vote, over the situation in Ukraine and Crimea’s reunification with Russia. In response, Russia suspended its participation in PACE’s activities and the payment of its contribution to the Council of Europe.</p><p style="margin:0px;padding:0px 0px 10px;border:0px;outline:0px;vertical-align:baseline;background:transparent;line-height:1.6">Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland aid on October 10, 2018, that Russia’s membership in the Committee of Ministers and the Parliamentary Assembly might be suspended starting from June 2019 due to non-payment of monetary contributions. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in response that Moscow would quit the Council of Europe if opposing member states called for expelling Russia</p></div></div><br style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica,Arial;font-size:16px"><br style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica,Arial;font-size:16px"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica,Arial;font-size:16px">More:</span><br style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica,Arial;font-size:16px"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica,Arial;font-size:16px"><a href="http://tass.com/politics/1061148">http://tass.com/politics/1061148</a></span>  <br clear="all"><div><br></div>-- <br><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature">=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+<br><br> Harold F. Schiffman<br><br>Professor Emeritus of <br> Dravidian Linguistics and Culture <br>Dept. of South Asia Studies                     <br>University of Pennsylvania<br>Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305<br><br>Phone:  (215) 898-7475<br>Fax:  (215) 573-2138                                      <br><br>Email:  <a href="mailto:haroldfs@gmail.com" target="_blank">haroldfs@gmail.com</a><br><a href="http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/" target="_blank">http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/</a>    <br><br>-------------------------------------------------</div></div>