The Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament, has ratified an additional protocol to the European Outline Convention on Transfrontier Cooperation between Territorial Communities or Authorities. The document was signed by the Council of Europe's 25 member states in Strasbourg on October 4, 2006, RBC reports. The protocol defines the legal status of cross-border cooperation bodies created on the basis of bilateral and multilateral agreements, as well as legal consequences of their activities.
The Federation Council also ratified Protocol No. 2 to the outline convention, regarding interterritorial cooperation, which was also signed on October 4, 2006 in Strasbourg. The move will allow the inclusion of all Russian regions within the scope of the convention, whereas currently it only applies to Russia's 49 near-border regions.