During the OSCE summit in Skopje, the Ukrainian delegation began to leave the room during the speech of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Due to the presence of the head of Russian diplomacy, the foreign ministers of Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia refused to participate in the meeting. As Lavrov began his speech, some diplomats, including the entire Ukrainian delegation, began to leave the room.
The Russian minister spoke in Russian. He spoke, among other things, about the ‘deplorable state’ of the OSCE and the fact that ‘Western political elites’ made a choice not in favor of the organization, but in favor of NATO. He argued that one of the key elements of the course taken by the West was “NATO’s reckless expansion eastward, which began after the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact.”
At one point Lavrov interrupted his speech and, apparently in response to the events in the room, said in English, “Will you please leave me alone?” Thank you.’ Then he continued talking.
Travel to the OSCE Summit. Lavrov’s plane had to change its route
Lavrov was scheduled to fly to the OSCE summit in Skopje, North Macedonia, via Bulgarian airspace. The Russian Foreign Ministry has received special permission from Bulgarian authorities to fly in advance, as Russian aircraft are not allowed to fly over Europe due to the sanctions imposed on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.
Ultimately, however, Lavrov’s plane had to fly through Greece. Bulgarian authorities refused to let him fly because Maria Zakharova, a representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, was on board and the permit did not apply to her.
The annual summit of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe lasts until Friday. Russia is one of the 57 member states of this bloc. Last year, Poland held the OSCE chairmanship and the summit took place in Łódź in December. Lavrov was not allowed to enter our country at the time because of his inclusion on the EU sanctions list.
Source: Do Rzeczy
Roy Brown is a renowned economist and author at The Nation View. He has a deep understanding of the global economy and its intricacies. He writes about a wide range of economic topics, including monetary policy, fiscal policy, international trade, and labor markets.
