Delegation of permanent representatives of the member states of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) for the first time in eight years arrived to Kyiv for a two-day visit.
The delegation included ambassadors of Austria, Italy, Iceland, Canada, Malta, Germany, Norway, Poland, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland, France and Switzerland, as well as deputy heads of missions of Estonia, Lithuania, Liechtenstein and the Czech Republic.
OSCE representatives met with the deputy head of the President’s Office Igor Brusil. According to the President’s Office, the meeting discussed the involvement of the OSCE in overcoming the consequences of Russian aggression, as well as the issue of holding Russia accountable.
The OSCE delegation honored the memory of those who died as a result of Russian attacks in Kyiv on June 17, informs the correspondent of Sospilny from the scene of the events. Then the Russian troops carried out a massive bombardment of the capital with strike drones and missiles, as a result of which the entrance of a residential building collapsed in the Solomyansk district, under the rubble of which 23 people died.
Vesa Hakkinen, Finland’s ambassador to the OSCE, which currently chairs the organization, emphasized the importance of personal familiarity with the consequences of shelling of civilian infrastructure:
“We are working to help Ukraine, this is what we do every day in Vienna, and now it was important for us to come to Kyiv to show support and solidarity. It became clearer for us how Ukrainians live here every day.”
The permanent representative of Ukraine to international organizations in Vienna, Yuriy Vitrenko, emphasized the symbolism of this visit, which took place on the eve of the 50th anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act:
“And our friends, ambassadors, and allies can see with their own eyes what Russia is destroying, brutally violating each of the ten final principles of the Helsinki Act.” Vitrenko said.
According to Hakkinen, the OSCE covers various aspects of Russia’s aggression in its activities: from political condemnation to the recording of crimes and the implementation of aid programs, particularly in the direction of European integration of Ukraine. Special attention was paid to the issue of the return of illegally deported Ukrainian children.
The OSCE special monitoring mission worked in Ukraine from March 21, 2014 to March 31, 2022. Its activities were terminated due to the lack of consensus in the OSCE Permanent Council regarding the extension of the mandate, which was a consequence of the position of the Russian Federation. In addition, on July 1, 2022, the OSCE stopped the work of its projects in Ukraine due to the Russian veto. Last July, Russia also announced the suspension of its participation in the organization.
