Prince Albert II of Monaco urged governments to pay special attention to minority rights and fighting racism in his speech Monday at a European summit, one of his first appearances abroad since he became ruler. The prince told the Council of Europe summit at Warsaw's Royal Castle that "the edifice that we have constructed, whatever the depth and the solidity of its foundations, remains fragile." "The question of national minorities, for example, is very worrying," he told the gathering of heads of state and government. "Respect for their rights ... must be the object of particular attention." "Every form of discrimination based on race or religion must be condemned without reserve _ we must remain extremely vigilant," the prince was quoted as saying by The Associated Press. Albert took over royal powers in tiny Monaco after his father, longtime ruler Prince Rainier III, died April 6. He will ascend to the throne July 12, after the close of the mourning period for Rainier. The prince, wearing a black tie, drew applause for his speech, in which he also stressed that the Mediterranean principality "attaches great importance" to protection of the environment. "Shouldn't the Europeans of today, like those of generations to come, be able to live with protected natural, and particularly marine, environments?" he asked.
