Russia’s foreign minister said on Thursday that no one has ever done as much damage to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) as the current Polish chairmanship.
Speaking at a news conference in Moscow, Sergey Lavrov said the Swedish chairmanship in 2021 started preparing the "OSCE’s funeral," with Poland following its lead by "digging a grave for this organization." Both countries are among the numerous Western countries firmly opposed to Russia’s war on Ukraine, which started in February. Since the war began, Sweden has also moved to join NATO, against Russian opposition.
"The Swedes were the chairmen last year, back then they openly began to act not as honest brokers, but as active participants in Western policy in the OSCE, subordinating the OSCE to the interests of the United States and Brussels.
"In fact, it was the Swedes who began to prepare the OSCE funeral. And our Polish neighbors have been diligently digging a grave for this organization all this year, destroying the remnants of the culture of consensus ... No one has ever done such damage to the OSCE, being in charge," he said.
Last month, Russia slammed Poland's refusal to issue a visa to Lavrov so he could take part in a meeting of OSCE foreign ministers, which begins today in the city of Lodz.
Lavrov added that the OSCE is losing its significance, and its authority and competencies "are being eroded in every possible way."
