The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Andrews, bowed out of his position as chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe yesterday with a passionate call to Russia to find a political solution to "the ongoing obscenity of the war in Chechnya".
Tomorrow the council's parliamentary assembly will consider various responses to Russia's violation of human rights during its offensive against Grozny, including suspension of Russia's council membership, though it is unlikely the council will go that far.
Mr Andrews's words echoed tough language used by Lord Russell-Johnston, president of the council's Parliamentary Assembly, who told the media on Monday: "In the cellars of Grozny, thousands of civilians, women, children and elderly people remain in conditions much more horrible than those during the siege of Sarajevo, which shocked and revolted the world community".
Mr Andrews told the assembly that he saw the Council of Europe, of which Ireland currently holds the presidency, as "the democratic voice of almost the entire continent". Membership of the council required a firm and unequivocal commitment to human rights.
Russia, and most of the former Soviet bloc, joined the council in the 1990s, and this week the institution faces one of its most difficult tests: what to do if one of its most powerful members violates its rules?
Both Mr Andrews and Lord Russell-Johnston have visited Russia recently, and have tried to impress on Moscow the gravity of the situation. They stressed that they recognised the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation, the "intolerable" situation created by Chechen incursions into neighbouring republics and the collapse of human rights protection in Chechnya. "We accept that Russian intervention against terrorism was necessary," said Lord Russell-Johnston, "but we disagree with the methods used. The French and Spanish face terrorist problems, but they don't start bombing Corsica or the Basque Country. The British experience with the IRA shows that in the end you have talk to people who were formerly terrorists."
The Russian Foreign Minister, Mr Ivanov, will come to Strasbourg tomorrow to respond to the views of the council. Mr Andrews, who met Mr Ivanov last week, said he had told him to "expect a robust debate, in which strong words will be spoken. We have to do something serious to bring the Russians to their senses." Mr Andrews was reluctant to offer a personal view as to whether Russia should be suspended, as his resignation as Minister for Foreign Affairs will have taken effect by then. He believes the council can achieve more with Russia as a member than by kicking Moscow out.
Diplomatic sources suggest that the likely outcome tomorrow will be a "ticking clock": a set of conditions which Russia must meet before the assembly convenes again in April, or face suspension then.
AFP adds: Human Rights Watch yesterday urged the Council of Europe to suspend Russia.
It accused Russian troops of "indiscriminate bombing" of refugees and other civilian targets. But the international rights monitoring group said Chechen rebels had also beaten civilians.