human rights field by the Commission and Council; calls for the full involvement of the European Parliament in drafting sections of future Annual Reports with regard to Parliament's own activities in relation to human rights, reflecting the practice of some past presidencies; 18. Welcomes the presentation to Parliament by the HR/VP of the EU annual report. and the new reporting period based on a calendar year, which gives the Parliament the opportunity to dedicate the December plenary to human rights, with the award of its annual Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought and the discussion of the EP annual report on human rights in the world and the EU’s policy on the matter; 19. Calls on the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission to make greater efforts to disseminate the EU annual reports on human rights and democracy and to ensure that they reach as wide a readership as possible, especially those involved in promoting human rights and democracy all over the world; also calls for public information campaigns aimed at raising the EU’s profile in this field; recognises that in the current edition an improvement has been made in terms of clearer presentation; 20. Reiterates its request that more and better information should be provided by the Council, the Commission and EU delegations and embassies on the ground for the assessment of policies and that specific guidelines should be defined and proposed to improve the general approach, minimise any contradictions and adjust the policy priorities on a country-by-country basis, with a view to the adoption of human rights strategies by country as defined in the EEAS programme; considers that the issue of transparency must be placed at the forefront by the EU in its actions, with increased access to agendas and documents where human rights are specifically discussed with non-EU countries; 21. Reiterates its call for a regular assessment of the use and results of European Union policies, instruments, initiatives and dialogues on human rights in non-EU countries and for the results to be fully shared with Parliament; calls on the Council and the Commission to develop specific quantifiable indices and benchmarks in order to measure the effectiveness of those policies; EU activities in the area of human rights in international fora 22. Highlights the future accession of the EU to the European Convention on Human Rights as an opportunity to prove its commitment to defending human rights inside and outside its borders; calls on the EU Member States to support this and commit the EU’s citizens to it; 23. Urges the Commission and the Council to promote widely, within and outside the Union, the European Convention on Human Rights, with the aim inter alia of educating the public on the existence of jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights that can be activated to address and redress violations suffered by a Member State of the Council of Europe or its citizens; 24. Urges the High Representative to ensure that the EEAS is well integrated and coordinated with other international bodies, regional organisations and their work in promoting human rights; calls on the High Representative to ensure that recommendations, concerns and priorities expressed within and by the UN system, the Council of Europe, the OSCE and other international institutions are fully and systematically integrated into all EU policy fields, and the human rights field in particular; 25. Notes with regret the slowness of the process of examining cases at the European Court of Human Rights, which has been as much as seven years; notes that there are about 100 000 cases pending at the Court; stresses that the Court must be an exemplary institution for the protection of the right to