STRASBOURG, France—Europe’s main human rights forum on June 25 approved Russia’s readmission, the first time that an international sanction imposed for its seizure of Crimea in 2014 has been reversed, despite a stalling protest from Ukraine and Georgia.
The decision, supported by France and Germany as a way of keeping communication open at a time of East-West tension, is a diplomatic boost for Russia, which has spent billions of dollars integrating Crimea but failed to secure Western recognition for its annexation from Ukraine.
