Russia withdraws from the European Convention against Torture The official withdrawal of the Russian Federation from the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Punishment took effect on November 1, the Council of Europe announced. Strasbourg recalled that the authorities in Moscow informed the Council of Europe of their decision on October 30, 2025. The statement of the Council of Europe states that the Russian Federation has been a member of the conference since 1998. By 2021, the staff of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture had visited Russia 30 times, visiting more than 450 places of detention. At the same time, Russia was the only country that actually did not publish CPT reports on visits - only four CPT reports were allowed to be published. "The unpublished reports relate to both regular and special visits, including 10 visits to Chechnya and the North Caucasus between 2000 and 2017. Russia may at any time authorize the publication of these documents," the CE said. Since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the CoE has received numerous reports of alleged torture and ill-treatment both on the territory of the Russian Federation and in the occupied territories of Ukraine. It was impossible to verify these reports due to the refusal of the Russian authorities to cooperate with the CPT, which is contrary to Ukraine's policy, which provides the CPT with "access to any place of deprivation of liberty in its territory at any time at the discretion of the commission."

Russia withdraws from the European Convention against Torture The official withdrawal of the Russian Federation from the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Punishment took effect on November 1, the Council of Europe announced. Strasbourg recalled that the authorities in Moscow informed the Council of Europe of their decision on October 30, 2025. The statement of the Council of Europe states that the Russian Federation has been a member of the conference since 1998. By 2021, the staff of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture had visited Russia 30 times, visiting more than 450 places of detention. At the same time, Russia was the only country that actually did not publish CPT reports on visits - only four CPT reports were allowed to be published. "The unpublished reports relate to both regular and special visits, including 10 visits to Chechnya and the North Caucasus between 2000 and 2017. Russia may at any time authorize the publication of these documents," the CE said. Since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the CoE has received numerous reports of alleged torture and ill-treatment both on the territory of the Russian Federation and in the occupied territories of Ukraine. It was impossible to verify these reports due to the refusal of the Russian authorities to cooperate with the CPT, which is contrary to Ukraine's policy, which provides the CPT with "access to any place of deprivation of liberty in its territory at any time at the discretion of the commission."