Boycott of Ukraine and partners, election of a new head and indifference of Lavrov: how the OSCE summit ended
Kyiv • UNN
The annual OSCE summit ended with Russia's indifference to the organization and the approval of Malta as its new chair. Russia's invasion of Ukraine led to a boycott by Ukraine and some allies
The world's largest regional security organization, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), concluded its annual summit on Friday, at which Russia expressed indifference to the organization's future, AFP reported, according to UNN.
Read more
The OSCE is meant to be a platform for security dialogue, but Russia has been said to block key decisions in the 57-nation body, including budget approval.
Meanwhile, Moscow's 21-month invasion of Ukraine has drawn sharp criticism from most members, and Ukraine and key allies boycotted the meeting in the North Macedonian capital of Skopje because of Russian participation.
Bujar Osmani, North Macedonia's foreign minister and OSCE chairman, spoke boldly about the outcome of the two-day meeting, saying that the body was "saved" because it managed to elect a new chairman and extend the mandates of its main officials.
"Russia's aggression against Ukraine has grossly violated the very basic principle and commitment of our organization," Osmani said at a press conference on Friday.
"It has also challenged the very existence of our organization, so the results of this ministerial council are breakthrough," he said.
The organization has confirmed Malta as the new chair next year, replacing NATO member Estonia, which Moscow rejected.
The OSCE was never conceived as an organization of like-minded countries, Osmani said, stressing that the organization continues to "serve as an active platform for dialogue and accountability."
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who attended the summit, expressed no concern about its existence.
"This is the main feeling: indifference," Lavrov told reporters earlier on Friday. - "The organization has already turned into something that makes me indifferent to what will happen to it.
In an address on Thursday, the Russian minister said the OSCE was becoming an "appendage" of NATO and the European Union: "The organization, to put it bluntly, is on the edge of an abyss. A simple question arises: does it make sense to invest in its revival?"
Established in 1975 as a platform for dialogue between the eastern and western blocs during the Cold War, the OSCE has struggled to function as Russia's war in Ukraine has strained the organization.
The Skopje conference was boycotted by Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, with the latter stating that Russia's presence was "unacceptable."
"While Russia is trying to destroy the OSCE, its participating states overwhelmingly support Ukraine," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba wrote on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday.
Ukraine wants the OSCE to expel Russia, as the Council of Europe has done.
Earlier this week, Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsakhkna said: "Lavrov's place is in a special tribunal, not at the OSCE table."
Maltese Foreign Minister Ian Borg, the new OSCE chairman, emphasized that the agreements reached at the meeting are "a testament to our shared commitment to further strengthening our organization."
"We must focus on ending wars and conflicts. Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine must stop," he told reporters.
