Ukrainian drone raid linked to OSCE head's visit to Russia
Ukraine launched a large-scale drone attack on Russia to specifically coincide with a visit to Moscow by the head of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said.
A total of 337 Ukrainian UAVs were shot down above Russian territory overnight, the Defense Ministry in Moscow said on Tuesday morning. Most of the drones were intercepted in Kursk and Moscow Regions, where 129 and 91 UAVs were downed respectively. In Moscow Region, two civilians were killed and more than a dozen wounded as a result of the raid, according to governor Andrey Vorobyev.
Zakharova wrote on Telegram on Tuesday that it was no coincidence that 'the Kiev regime sent UAVs towards the capital when it was visited by OSCE Secretary General [Feridun Sinirlioglu].'
'This is not the first time that a trip to Moscow by a high-ranking foreign delegation is being accompanied by a Ukrainian drone attack,' she stressed.
The spokeswoman also expressed regret that during the conflict between Russia and Ukraine the OSCE 'has been reduced to merely a talking shop, deprived of its original purpose of ensuring security and cooperation in Europe, by the sponsors of [Ukrainian leader Vladimir] Zelensky.'
According to an earlier statement, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will be holding a meeting with Sinirlioglu in Moscow on Tuesday.
A wide range of topics connected to Russia's interactions with the OSCE and its leadership will be discussed during the talks, the statement read. Moscow also intends to raise the issue of the safety of journalists and ways to increase the effectiveness of the organization's work in this area, it added.
Zakharova said on Monday that the OSCE continues to be in the 'deepest existential and institutional crisis,' but expressed hope that there will be 'a constructive, comprehensive exchange of opinions' between Lavrov and Sinirlioglu.
The last time the OSCE head visited Moscow was in June 2021, more than half a year before the escalation between Russia and Ukraine. At the time, the organization was headed by Helga Schmid.
Moscow has accused the OSCE of multiple failings throughout the Ukraine conflict, including a lack of objectivity.
Last year, Russia criticized the OSCE for failing to denounce the killings of Russian civilians by Ukrainian forces during their raids in border regions. It also accused the organization of covering up irregularities in the Moldovan presidential election, which was won pro-Western President Maia Sandu.
Earlier this month, former Greek ambassador to Ukraine Vasilios Bornovas claimed that OSCE observers who had been working in Donbass between 2014 and 2022 secretly shared intelligence with Kiev.
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