Speeches and Interviews of the Permanent Representative

STATEMENT BY MR. ALEXANDER LUKASHEVICH,
PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION,
AT THE 1361st (SPECIAL) MEETING OF THE OSCE PERMANENT COUNCIL

7 March 2022

On the gross and continuous violations of humanitarian law
by Ukraine and the Western community’s support for these

Mr. Chairperson,

I cannot but express my profound disappointment at the statement to the press by the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Poland Zbigniew Rau, following his talks with the United States Secretary of State, Antony J. Blinken, on 5 March. Please explain to me how a country holding the OSCE Chairmanship can, as Mr. Rau put it, “co-ordinate actions” against one of the Organization’s participating States (“[O]ur meeting with Secretary, State Secretary Blinken, was devoted to coordinating actions in response to the Russian aggression against Ukraine [...] [W]e raised the most important issues ... both for Polish-American bilateral relations and for allied cooperation between NATO, as well as for the coordination of political activities in the OSCE”). This is an outrageous violation by Poland of the mandate of the OSCE Chairmanship-in-Office as approved at the Ministerial Council meeting in Porto in 2002, and also of Permanent Council Decision No. 485 on public statements. The very point of the Chairmanship’s work consists in resolving disagreements between the participating States and bringing about rapprochement – it has certainly nothing to do with stirring up confrontation even further through biased steps of its own, let alone leading anti-Russian efforts at the OSCE. We urge the representatives of the Chairmanship to stop wrecking the OSCE, which in the present circumstances remains almost the only platform where pan-European dialogue is possible. Reflect on the historical consequences of your actions that seek to destroy the foundations for co-operation in the interests of all countries’ security.

Instead of making extremely confrontational statements, the Chairmanship – in accordance with one of its priorities, namely to help conflict-affected civilian populations – should immediately provide political support for the safe evacuation of the civilian population from the areas of hostilities.

Despite the constant efforts by the armed forces of the Russian Federation, which are doing everything possible to protect civilians during the special military operation, the humanitarian situation in Ukraine has reached a critical point owing to the criminal actions of the Kyiv regime and the nationalist armed formations. The Ukrainian Government is not taking effective steps to evacuate people and refuses to bring its influence to bear on the nationalists, who continue to use the population as “human shields”. Curfews have been imposed in Ukrainian cities; in many of them, bridges that were used by civilians have been blown up, roads leading out of them have been mined, and civilians are threatened with physical reprisals.

The humanitarian situation is most dire in Kyiv and its environs, Kharkiv, Sumy, Chernihiv, Volnovakha and Mariupol. The Kyiv regime has almost lost the ability to govern the administrations in charge of the country’s regions and districts; the local authorities are unable to resolve basic social problems concerned with everyday life.

Nationalist so-called “territorial defence” battalions – essentially criminal gangs – are committing excesses in most Ukrainian cities. Incidentally, these were created in complicity with and under the leadership of so-called military advisers and instructors from NATO. Tens of thousands of people, including foreigners, have been turned into hostages; officials are afraid of the radicals and are not helping with the organization of humanitarian corridors. For example, more than 6,000 young people, including foreign students, are being held at the Kharkiv railway station. Nationalists in Kherson are trying to thwart the handing out of humanitarian aid from Russia by intimidating the local population.

On 5 March, a ceasefire was established in Mariupol and Volnovakha, and humanitarian corridors were opened for the evacuation of civilians. However, people were unable to use these corridors: just a few hundred managed to make their way out as shooting went on around them, even though the International Red Cross had been expecting up to 200,000 evacuees. The situation did not improve on 6 March. Not only are the nationalists not releasing civilians, whom they force to sit cowering in cellars: they are exploiting the ceasefire to strengthen their positions. Moreover, they have repeatedly violated the ceasefire in the humanitarian corridor zones. We note the statements by the Ukrainian authorities to the effect that, despite the disruption of the evacuation from Mariupol, they are preparing humanitarian corridors out of Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson and the suburbs of Kyiv. Such a statement was made by

Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk. In reality, though, the situation is quite different. The Ukrainian side is categorically refusing to co-operate in evacuations from Kharkiv and Sumy, where thousands of people are being held. It is misinforming the inhabitants of Mariupol regarding a postponement of the evacuation. In order to demoralize civilians and foreigners, reports are appearing in the Ukrainian media about the establishment of camps by the Ukrainian Government to intern those who do not support the regime.

As from 10 a.m. today, 7 March, Russia has again opened humanitarian corridors. There are six of them: one from Kyiv to Homieĺ; two from Mariupol, respectively to Zaporizhzhia and Rostov-on-Don; one from Kharkiv to Belgorod; and two from Sumy, respectively to Belgorod and Poltava. We are puzzled by Ms. Vereshchuk’s remarks against the opening of corridors to allow people to leave for Russia. Indeed, the Ukrainian authorities subsequently emphasized that, for their part, they refused to establish the humanitarian corridors proposed by Russia.

According to available information, the Ukrainian Security Service is preparing, together with fighters from the Azov battalion, a provocation potentially involving radioactive contamination of the area around Kharkiv by blowing up the reactor at the Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology and then accusing the Russian armed forces of having struck it with a missile. Foreign journalists arrived in Kharkiv already on 6 March to record this mythical missile strike.

Of great concern are the reports about fighters from the nationalist Azov battalion mining residential buildings in the central streets of Mariupol, near the car parking areas on Moskovskaya Street and Victory Avenue. The nationalists have laid approximately 10,000 PFM-1 “Lepestok” anti-personnel mines. An 80-year-old pensioner, Vladimir Karpov, managed to leave Mariupol on foot on 6 March. He said that the inhabitants of that city were being wiped out. Moreover, apart from the Ukrainian side, there was no one else there who could be responsible for all the shooting at people and buildings, including international offices. The pensioner’s account was corroborated shortly afterwards, when Azov fighters fired upon a column of civilians trying to leave Mariupol via a humanitarian corridor along the M23 highway in the direction of Novoazovsk.

According to the information available, two civilians were killed and four were wounded. At the same time, military personnel from the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Russian armed forces ensured that around 150 people were able to leave the city safely. No less horrifying is the inhumane treatment of captured and detained Russian military personnel by Ukrainian armed formations.

To this day, thousands of foreigners are being held hostage in localities across Ukraine. Instances of racial discrimination have multiplied; radical nationalists are preventing the evacuation of foreigners, especially those with a dark skin colour, but also citizens of India, Israel, Indonesia, Pakistan and Egypt. At the railway station in Kharkiv, Ukrainian Nazis opened fire on a group of Indian citizens. More than 1,000 Indian students trying to make their way independently to Russia are stuck in Pisochyn, in the environs of Kharkiv. In Sumy, neo-Nazis opened fire on a hostel housing Indian students: five were injured, while the fate of an additional 11 students is unclear. When attempting to leave that city and independently make their way to the border crossing point at Sudzha, a group of students from Pakistan (up to twenty strong) were beaten up by “territorial defence” nationalists and taken back to their hostel. There is information to the effect that Ukrainian nationalists intend to kill nine citizens of Iraq held in Sumy and to pin the blame on the Russian military. Reports are coming in of ethnic cleansing by radicals who are taking away to an unknown destination all people without a Ukrainian passport.

The OSCE cannot stay aloof from this intolerable situation in which civilians are being held hostage as “human shields”. We urge the Polish Chairmanship and the Secretary General to exert, without delay, as much pressure as possible on the Kyiv regime and get it to end this criminal practice whereby international humanitarian law is being trampled underfoot. It is necessary to ensure that Ukrainian armed formations, including nationalists, stop using the civilian population as cover, and that civilians can be evacuated safely via the humanitarian corridors that are being established. The use of targeted fire against civilians with the intention to kill them needs to be condemned immediately and in the most categorical terms.

Russia, for its part, continues to do everything possible to help alleviate the plight of the civilian population. As from 5 March, in accordance with a Decree of the President of Russia, foreign nationals and stateless people may enter Russia from the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Luhansk People’s Republic and Ukraine, and subsequently depart for their countries using valid identity documents without the need for a visa to be issued.

Additionally, Russian government agencies are undertaking extensive efforts to deliver humanitarian aid to Donbas and Ukraine. An inter-agency co-ordination headquarters in charge of the humanitarian response is operating. As at 6 March, over 800 tonnes of humanitarian supplies had been delivered from Russia to Ukraine and 110 humanitarian campaigns had been conducted in 123 localities. More than 168,000 people, including over 43,000 children, have been evacuated from the areas in which the special operation is taking place. Furthermore, Russia provided assistance with the evacuation of the international staff of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM). The staff of three of the SMM’s regional teams of monitors were able to make their way safely and securely to the territory of the Russian Federation and are travelling onward to their home countries. At present, all international SMM personnel have left the territory of Ukraine; monitoring functions are not being carried out physically by the Mission’s monitors.

Mr. Chairperson,

On 6 March, in the course of the special military operation, evidence was discovered of the Kyiv regime having urgently removed traces of the military biological programme being implemented in Ukraine with funding from the US Department of Defense. Staff from Ukrainian biological laboratories provided information about the urgent destruction, on 24 February, of particularly dangerous pathogens causing plague, anthrax, tularaemia, cholera and other fatal diseases. They were disposed of in a rush at the behest of senior officials of the Ukrainian Ministry of Health, evidently with a view to concealing evidence of secret biological experiments performed on the territory of Ukraine. By destroying these dangerous pathogens, the Kyiv regime and its foreign handlers were obviously seeking to prevent evidence from coming to light of the violation of Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction by the United States of America and Ukraine. The documents obtained confirm that components of biological weapons were being developed in close proximity to the territory of Russia. It has also been established that laboratories of the Central Directorate of Health and Epidemiology of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence were involved in the US military biological programme. The findings from analysis of the documents obtained will be presented to the public in the very near future.

Western countries have begun making massive shipments of Stinger man-portable air defence systems (MANPADS), other man-portable systems, and Javelin, NLAW (Next Generation Light Anti-Tank Weapon) and Carl-Gustaf anti-tank missile systems. The organizers of these shipments must surely be aware of the growing risk that these high-precision weapons may end up in the hands of terrorist elements and criminal gangs not only in Ukraine but in Europe as a whole. MANPADS pose a huge threat to civil aviation, while anti-tank missile systems are equally dangerous to railway transport and to infrastructure facilities.

Moreover, officials in the Western capitals are blatantly disregarding a number of international agreements aimed at minimizing the risk of MANPADS falling into the hands of terrorist and criminal elements. These include United Nations General Assembly resolution 62/40 from 2007 on the prevention of the illicit transfer and unauthorized access to and use of MANPADS and the Elements for Export Controls of MANPADS from 2003, which were adopted under the Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies.

The aforementioned instruments stipulate the adoption of strict controls at the national level on the export of MANPADS, the exchange of information on the status of stockpiles and on the export of MANPADS, the secure storage of this type of high-tech weapon, and the destruction of MANPADS stocks exceeding the level required to ensure national security.

In the early 2000s, colossal efforts were invested in destroying MANPADS surpluses in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, Montenegro, Macedonia, Cambodia and Nicaragua – an endeavour initiated under the Partnership for Peace programme. In Ukraine alone, around 3,000 surplus MANPADS were destroyed at the time. It is also worth noting the programme run by the US Department of Defense for many years to buy back from mujahidin, Al-Qaida fighters and fighters from the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan Stinger MANPADS that the United States had previously supplied to Afghanistan.

At the instigation of the collective West, a massive worldwide proliferation of highly dangerous weapons is under way. We once again call on the European Union and NATO countries to stop recklessly beefing up the Kyiv regime with the latest weapons systems, and thus avoid colossal risks for international civil aviation and other transport linkages not only in Europe but also beyond.

In closing, I should like to confirm Russia’s willingness to engage in dialogue, not least with our foreign partners, with a view to resolving the crisis in Ukraine. Having said that, we draw attention to the futility of any attempts at dragging out the negotiation process, which the Ukrainian military and nationalist battalions would use to regroup and strengthen their positions. As part of the Russian-Ukrainian contacts in Belarus on 27 February and 3 March, issues were discussed that had to do with resolving the current situation, notably the establishment of humanitarian corridors to enable civilians to leave. We anticipate that the latest round of contacts with Ukrainian representatives, which began today, will prove fruitful and make it possible to bring peace closer in Donbas and to return Ukraine itself to stabilization, with due account taken of Russia’s well-known demands.

I request that this statement be attached to the journal of today’s special meeting of the Permanent Council.

Thank you for your attention.