Partial agreement

Partial agreement is a term used within the Council of Europe to refer to a major activity of European cooperation that is organised by the Council of Europe but does not include all of its member states. This form of activity dates from a resolution adopted by the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers on 2 August 1951. The resolution allowed for the adoption of agreements by a limited number of member states, without the participation of the remainder. Any expenditure would be made by the participating states alone. This form of variable geometry in intergovernmental cooperation has not been imitated by other international organisations. This form of cooperation also allows some activities to include non-European states as full-fledged participants.