War against Ukraine: this is the situation
The annual meeting of foreign ministers of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) will take place without the top diplomats from Ukraine and the Baltic states.
In protest against the participation of their Russian colleague Sergei Lavrov, they had canceled their attendance at the two-day conference in Skopje, North Macedonia, at short notice. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, on the other hand, stood by their attendance.
Russia's leadership appeared belligerent ahead of the meeting. "We will insist on the return of the OSCE to its original principles and its original purpose", said Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko according to the state news agency Tass on Wednesday. He described the mood among the Russian delegation as "militantly determined". At the same time, Grushko called the non-arrival of the Balts insignificant. Their presence at the summit was not decisive for the future of the OSCE, he explained.
After more than 21 months of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, the OSCE is one of the few dialog forums for security and democracy policy in which Western representatives still sit at the same table as Russia. However, Moscow has largely blocked the organization with its veto stance since the start of the war.
Baerbock: OSCE central piece of the puzzle for security in Europe
In view of Moscow's blockade, Foreign Minister Baerbock called for the OSCE to remain operational. If the OSCE is to continue to ensure the security of the 1.3 billion people in its 57 member states, "we must also give it the tools and the pilots to ensure that it remains reasonably operational and can continue - even in rough weather", said the Green politician on Wednesday before her departure for the annual OSCE ministerial meeting.
Selenskyj visits war- and storm-torn regions of southern Ukraine
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the regions of Odessa, Mykolaiv and Kherson in the south of the country, which have been severely affected by war and the recent storm. During the meeting, many issues were discussed, above all the security of the country and its population, Zelensky said in his daily video message on Wednesday. In Odessa, for example, they discussed strengthening air defenses and securing the corridor set up by Kiev to export grain across the Black Sea. The port city has been a target of Russian drone and missile attacks for months.
Russia reports the capture of a village in the Donetsk region
The Russian army has reported that it has captured another village in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine. The village of Khromove (Artyomovskoye in Russian) has now been brought completely under Russian control, the Ministry of Defense in Moscow announced on Wednesday. The village is located to the west of the town of Bachmut (Artyomovsk in Russian), which was occupied by Russian troops and largely destroyed during the war. The information could not be verified. There was initially no comment from Ukraine. The capture would be a setback for the Ukrainian armed forces, who want to liberate their territories occupied by Russian troops with a counter-offensive.
NATO assumes enormous Russian losses in Ukraine
According to NATO estimates, the number of Russian soldiers killed or wounded in Ukraine has exceeded the 300,000 mark. "Militarily, Russia has lost a considerable part of its conventional armed forces," said Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg after an alliance meeting with the Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Brussels. This also included hundreds of aircraft and thousands of tanks. At the same time, Stoltenberg warned against pinning high hopes on the losses leading to a quick end to the war in Ukraine.
Russian general and police officer killed in Ukraine
The death of several high-ranking Russian military and police officers in the Moscow-occupied part of the southern Ukrainian region of Kherson is an example of the high casualties. Russian state media reported on Wednesday that at least four police officers were killed and 18 officers of the occupying forces were injured in an attack on the village of Juwilejne the day before. The Ukrainian military and independent Russian Telegram channels confirmed the attack on the meeting of occupation officials in the village located around 65 kilometers southeast of Kherson. There was talk of five police officers dead in Kiev. The Russian research group CIT (Conflict Intelligence Team), which is close to the opposition, also reported the suspected death of a Russian major general on Wednesday.
What will be important today
The OSCE Foreign Ministers' Meeting begins in Skopje. Lavrov's participation in the conference has already triggered protests and the decision by some ministers not to attend.
- The cancellation of Ukraine and the Baltic states' attendance at the OSCE meeting in Skopje is a protest against Sergey Lavrov's participation, as they disagree with Russia's actions in the ongoing conflict.
- Despite the protests, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken still plan to attend the OSCE meeting to discuss the organization's role in ensuring security and democracy.
- Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko stated that the non-attendance of the Baltic states is insignificant and that Russia will continue to push for the OSCE to return to its original principles.
- The OSCE meeting comes at a critical time, as the organization is one of the few remaining dialogue forums between Russia and the West, and Ukraine is still experiencing conflict in areas like Donetsk, where Russia recently reported the capture of a village.
Source: www.dpa.com
