The EU and its member states are under the obligation to respect and are indeed duty-bound to promote the basic freedoms, including religious freedom, both within the Union and throughout the world. In other words, they should guarantee respect for religious freedom, including that of religious minorities. Hence, the COMECE secretariat warmly welcomed the resolution adopted by the Council of the European Union on 16 November 2009, which reaffirmed, “the strong commitment of the European Union to the promotion and protection of freedom of religion or belief” and “its intention to continue to give priority to the issues as part of the European Union’s human rights policy”.

In 1965 Vatican Council II adopted the Declaration "Dignitatis Humanae", asserting:

“The human person has a right to religious freedom. This freedom means that all men are to be immune from coercion on the part of individuals or of social groups and of any human power, that no one is to be forced to act in a manner contrary to his own beliefs, whether privately or publicly, whether alone or in association with others, within due limits.”

A Memorandum for the attention of the European Union

In May 2010 the Bishops of COMECE welcomed a report made by its secretariat under the title "Religious Freedom, Pillar of the Human Rights Policy in the External Relations of the European Union".

While rejoicing at the growing awareness of the EU as to the importance of the right to religious freedom (part 4), the report:

The current report, compiled by the COMECE Secretariat, documents the initiatives taken by the European Parliament and the European External Action Service (EEAS) on religious freedom, covering the years 2010 to September 2012.