1. The European Union welcomes this regular thematic debate, an opportunity to reaffirm our unequivocal opposition to the death penalty, including any reintroduction of it, as well as to express support for the leading role the Council of Europe plays in promoting our common vision of Europe as a death penalty-free continent.
2. The large majority of the Council of Europe Member States, including all members of the European Union, have reaffirmed their commitment to the abolition of capital punishment by ratifying Protocol No.13 to the European Convention on Human Rights. We call on Member States that have not yet done so to ratify this Protocol as a matter of priority.
3. Following the exclusion of the Russian Federation from the Council of Europe, the European Union strongly encourages the Russian authorities to keep the moratorium established by the decision of the Russian Constitutional Court on 19 November 2009 as a first step towards a de jure abolition of the death penalty.
4. The European Union regrets, once more, that there is one European country that still applies the death penalty, Belarus, and strongly condemns the confirmed information on the secret executions of Viktor Skrundik and Viktor Pavlov carried out in 2021.
5. We repeat our strong call on the authorities of Belarus to stop executions pending abolition of the death penalty, to apply the alternative punishment provided for in the Belarusian criminal legislation, and to commute the death sentence in respect of the sole person known to remain on death row – Viktor Sergel.
6. The European Union deeply regrets that after the establishment by the Parliament of Belarus of a new working group on studying the issue of the abolishment of the death penalty, no concrete steps were undertaken.
7. We regret that capital punishment continues to be applied in some states of the United States of America and in Japan, both observer States to the Council of Europe.
8. The European Union continues to note the slow but steady decrease in the number of executions at the US State level, and the increasing number of US States that have abolished the death penalty, as well as the continued moratorium on federal executions. All these are signs that perceptions within the American public and system are changing towards what we hope to be a definitive end to this practice.
9. As for Japan, the European Union regrets that after a two-year hiatus, executions resumed recently, contrary to the overall worldwide trend to abolish the death penalty, and calls on the authorities to promote an open debate towards the abolition of the death penalty.
10. The European Union reaffirms its strong opposition to the capital punishment in all times and under all circumstances. The death penalty is incompatible with human dignity. It makes any miscarriage of justice irreversible. Furthermore, the death penalty does not have any deterrent effect on crime.
11. Guided by our shared values and principles, we will continue to address persisting concerns in this field as part of our coordinated efforts in achieving our common goal: the universal abolition of the death penalty.

The following countries align with this statement: Albania, Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Liechtenstein, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Republic of North Macedonia, Norway, San Marino, Serbia, Ukraine and United Kingdom.