country. The Assembly urges the authorities to adopt without further delay these by-laws, that should fully adhere to the requirements under the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (ETS No. 157). In addition, referring to Opinion 189 (1995), the Assembly calls on the Albanian authorities to sign and ratify the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (ETS No. 148).

4.2. with respect to Armenia: the Assembly commends the actions of the authorities and the solidarity of the population to receive the more than 100 000 refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh and calls on Council of Europe member States to provide all support to help Armenia tackling this enormous challenge. The Assembly welcomes the continuation of democratic reforms and specifically the improvement of the electoral framework. It calls on the authorities to strengthen media freedom and independence and to continue the reform of the judiciary and the efforts to fight corruption. The Assembly urges both the majority and the opposition to refrain from hate speech and stigmatisation and to contribute to the establishment of a genuine democratic culture based on the recognition by political opponents of each other’s legitimacy;

4.3. with respect to Azerbaijan: while welcoming the recent reform of the Judicial Legal Council, the Assembly regrets that concerns with regard to the rule of law, pluralist democracy and human rights remain unaddressed. It is seriously concerned about the human rights situation in the country, in particular with regard to the independence of the judiciary, freedom of expression, media freedom, and freedom of association. Allegations of politically motivated arrests and detention, as well as allegations of torture and ill-treatment by law enforcement officials and poor detention conditions are of concern in this context. Recalling Resolution 2494 (2023), it urges the authorities to fully and swiftly implement the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights, in particular those revealing structural or complex problems, some of which have not been resolved for over 10 years. It also invites the authorities to implement without delay outstanding recommendations of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission), in particular those concerning the legislative framework on political parties and media. As regards the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, the Assembly reiterates its recommendations included in Resolutions 2517 (2023) and 2508 (2023). The Assembly is also monitoring the situation around the Armenian prisoners of war, civilians and other captives, as well as all detained representatives of Nagorno-Karabakh currently held in Azerbaijan and calls upon Azerbaijan to immediately release all detainees;

4.4. with respect to Bosnia and Herzegovina: the Assembly welcomes the swift formation of all levels of government following the last elections. It also welcomes the adoption of important reforms in spite of the persistence of serious challenges to the authority and legitimacy of the State institutions. The Assembly reiterates its call for constitutional and electoral reforms with the purpose of eliminating the discrimination based on ethnic affiliation, in line with the requirements of the European Convention on Human Rights (ETS No. 5). It considers that additional reforms are urgently needed to improve the rule of law, independence of the judiciary and fight against corruption. In this regard, the Assembly is deeply concerned by recent steps taken at entity level that negatively affect the freedom of journalists and freedom of association;

4.5. with respect to Georgia: the Assembly welcomes the continuing reforms by the country to honour its accession commitments and membership obligations to the Council of Europe. In that respect, it welcomes the recent European Council decision to grant Georgia EU candidate status, which is a clear recognition of its longstanding aspirations. The Assembly welcomes that Mr Levan Ioseliani, a former member, was appointed as the new Ombudsperson by the Georgian Parliament on the basis of a consensus between ruling majority and opposition. Nevertheless, it remains deeply concerned about the continuing extreme polarisation of the political environment, that is permeating all levels of society. This extreme polarisation is negatively affecting the implementation of the reforms that are essential for the democratic consolidation of the country. It urges the ruling majority, as well as other political forces in the country, to refrain from any actions that could increase the tensions and polarisation in the country. The Assembly reiterates its call in Resolution 2438 (2022) for a holistic reform of the judiciary with a view to ensuring its genuine independence and impartiality. In that respect, it regrets that the recent changes to the Law on Common Courts, despite implementing some improvements, do not reform the High Council of the Judiciary, whose functioning is a key obstacle to the independence of the judiciary, and in the view of the Venice Commission do not amount to a holistic reform as meant by the Assembly. The Assembly takes note of the urgent opinion of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE/ODIHR), requested by the Georgian Ombudsperson, on the draft amendments to the Law on Assemblies and Demonstrations and, in line with this opinion, urges the Georgian authorities to withdraw these draft

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