MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On February 28, 1996, Russia joined the Council of Europe, becoming the 39th member of the organization. In commemoration of the 20th anniversary of Moscow's membership, Lavrov sent a letter to Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjorn Jagland.
"In the present challenging situation in our continent we consider it important for the Council of Europe to carry out its activities without double standards and selective approaches that undermine its underlying principles and to contribute to overcoming lack of mutual trust," Lavrov said in the letter.
During its membership, Russia has ratified 61 of the Council's 219 treaties, however one of them has been denounced later. Moscow makes one of the largest contributions to the organization, roughly 10 percent of its total.
