At the 1246th meeting of OSCE PC – Lithuania‘s response to the ungrounded Russia‘s allegations of political persecutions in Lithuania
On November 7, 2019, at the 1246th meeting of the Permanent Council of the OSCE, the delegation of Russia once again made its statement with allegations on “political persecutions” in Lithuania, “remembered” the January 13, 1991, and tried to white-wash the war crimes committed by the Soviet army against the peaceful civilian population of Lithuania.
In his response, Ambassador A. Taurantas, Permanent Representative of Lithuania to the International Organizations in Vienna, defended the victims of these tragic events and reminded the Russian delegation that event the laws of the Soviet occupational regime did not allow the army to use its military force against peaceful civilian population. He called on Russia to stop politicizing history and one-sided interpretation of International Law. Russia was also reminded all judicial cases in Lithuania are dealt by independent courts, and in accordance with existing national laws and in line with the international commitments of Lithuania, not by Kremlin.
During this meeting, the delegations also exchanged views on the latest developments of Russia-Ukraine conflict. The completion of the disengagement of forces in Zolote has been evaluated positively. The EU and its Member States expressed their hope there will be no further provocations by the Russia-backed armed formations in Petrivske and that similar process of disengagement will be started soon. This would also allow to convene a Normandy Summit and to, possibly, give new impetus for the peaceful resolution of this particular military conflict. However, it is absolutely clear, the efforts just by Ukraine are not enough – there is a need to see similar political will also on the side of Russia.
Among other issues on the agenda, there were also a report by the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities Mr L. Zannier, and an exchange of views on the resolution of the conflict in Nagorno Karabakh, to which the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group Mr I. Popov, Mr S. Visconti and Mr A. Schofer and the Personal Representative by OSCE CiO Mr A. Kasprzyk were also present.
