The foreign ministers of the Baltic countries are boycotting the OSCE meeting because of the Russian delegation

The heads of the foreign policy departments of the Baltic countries refused to participate in the meeting of the Council of Ministers of the OSCE, which will be held in Skopje.

The ministers stated that they oppose the presence of a delegation from Russia at the meeting, in particular Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. The ministers of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia published a statement in which it is said that they do not want to legitimize Russia’s military aggression with their participation.

“In the last two years, we have witnessed how one state – a member of the OSCE – actively and cruelly tries to destroy another. <…> The OSCE was originally created to strengthen European security, prevent conflicts and preserve peace. Russia, with its illegal and cruel actions, proves again and again that it is not a partner of Europe in the sphere of security. In fact, today Europe needs security from Russia and against it, not together with it,” he quotes from the statement “Nastoyastchee vremya”.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Alexander Hrushko said that the boycott of the meeting in Skopje by the three Baltic states will not have any influence on the future of the OSCE. According to Hrushko, the Russian delegation is going to the session of the organization “with a fighting spirit.”

Earlier, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba said that he would boycott the meeting of the OSCE ministers – also because of Lavrov. The Ukrainian delegation will be present at the level of ambassadors.

• The meeting in Skopje will take place from November 30 to December 1. North Macedonia agreed to open its airspace for Sergey Lavrov’s plane to participate in the meeting. Earlier, the country’s authorities banned Russian aircraft from entering its airspace as part of sanctions due to the invasion of Ukraine.