Lavrov: My participation in the OSCE meeting depends on Bulgaria

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on November 27 that he will attend the Ministerial Council of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), to be held in North Macedonia, if Bulgaria opens its airspace to flights. Russian.

"Apparently, Bulgaria has promised [North] Macedonia that it will open its airspace. If that happens, then we will be there. Let's see," Lavrov said at a press conference in Moscow.

Lavrov said that several Western countries had already requested meetings with him.

"If someone approaches us, we never run away or hide," said the head of Russian diplomacy.

However, Skopje said that they have not accepted any commitment from Sofia to allow Lavrov to fly in Bulgarian airspace.

"North Macedonia has not accepted any promise from Bulgaria that Sofia will open its airspace for the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's plane to attend the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting in Skopje. Bulgaria or Greece must decide whether one of them will lift the sanctions for Russian flights or only allow Lavrov's plane to fly in their space", sources from the Foreign Ministry of North Macedonia told Radio Free Europe.

Previously, the Government of North Macedonia decided to lift the stoppage of the flight of the Russian plane that would allow the participation of the head of Russian diplomacy, Sergei Lavrov, in the OSCE Ministerial Council in Skopje.

On Saturday, the Foreign Minister of North Macedonia, Bujar Osmani, said that he is negotiating with Bulgaria and Greece to allow the flight of the Russian delegation.

Meanwhile, after the meeting of the Permanent Council held in Vienna, the ambassadors of the 57 member states of this organization, on November 27, Bujar Osmani said that a consensus has been reached for Malta to be the next country to join the OSCE in 2024.

"The decision will be confirmed at the 30th OSCE Ministerial Council in Skopje. Kudos to Malta for its willingness to take on this vital role and to all OSCE participating and partner countries for their flexibility and support," Osmani wrote on his Facebook profile.

The OSCE Ministerial Council, to be held in Skopje, is seen as a key event in which it will be decided how the organization will operate in the future, given the ongoing obstacles and blockades imposed by Russia since its inception. of the invasion of Ukraine last February.

In the Ministerial Council in Skopje, which will be held on November 30 and December 1, 76 delegations will participate, 57 from the OSCE member states and other partner states of the organization./rel