Forwarded from Russian MFA 🇷🇺
🕯 On March 24, 1999, the #US and its #NATO allies began a 78-day armed aggression against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
▪️ NATO conducted over 35,000 air raids, dropping some 3,000 cruise missiles and over 10,000 tonnes of bombs on the country. In TNT equivalent, this is five times the yield of the nuclear bomb, which the Americans dropped on Hiroshima in 1945.
▪️ Over 2,000 Serbs, including children, women and elderly people, were killed in the bombing raids. They were later cynically described as “collateral damage.”
▪️ NATO’s aggression against Yugoslavia in 1999 was the first armed invasion of a sovereign state in Europe since 1945. That tragic contribution to European history was made by the “purely defensive” alliance.
▪️ NATO conducted over 35,000 air raids, dropping some 3,000 cruise missiles and over 10,000 tonnes of bombs on the country. In TNT equivalent, this is five times the yield of the nuclear bomb, which the Americans dropped on Hiroshima in 1945.
▪️ Over 2,000 Serbs, including children, women and elderly people, were killed in the bombing raids. They were later cynically described as “collateral damage.”
▪️ NATO’s aggression against Yugoslavia in 1999 was the first armed invasion of a sovereign state in Europe since 1945. That tragic contribution to European history was made by the “purely defensive” alliance.
Forwarded from 🇷🇺Arms Control Delegation in Vienna
🎙Head of the Delegation Konstantin #Gavrilov:
💬 It’s telling that in 2017 the 🇺🇸#Congress adopted a #Pentagon appropriations bill that prohibited funding of the #Azov battalion (which had been integrated into the Ukrainian National Guard) because it is a neo-Nazi organization.
💬 Nevertheless, 🇺🇸#US weapons have been falling into the hands of 🇺🇦 neo-#Nazi battalions, including, of course, Azov, all these years in violation of the law. “Grateful” fighters eagerly posed for pictures with a NATO flag and a fascist swastika.
💬 It’s telling that in 2017 the 🇺🇸#Congress adopted a #Pentagon appropriations bill that prohibited funding of the #Azov battalion (which had been integrated into the Ukrainian National Guard) because it is a neo-Nazi organization.
💬 Nevertheless, 🇺🇸#US weapons have been falling into the hands of 🇺🇦 neo-#Nazi battalions, including, of course, Azov, all these years in violation of the law. “Grateful” fighters eagerly posed for pictures with a NATO flag and a fascist swastika.
🚨Read the extracts from the statement of Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the OSCE Alexander Volgarev “To the report of the OSCE High Commissioner for National Minorities Kairat Abdrakhmanov”, (meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council, 7 July 2022):
🔹We are disappointed with the assessments, attitudes and interpretations of the root causes and objectives of Russia's compelled special military operation in #Ukraine contained in the report of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities
🔹It’s true that it’s a war in #Ukraine over the past 8 years - a disgusting war against its own population elevated by the Kyiv regime to the rank of state policy, which has become one of the main causes of the current crisis in Ukraine
🔹For many years, with the active support of #US, #EU, as well as other Western countries, violence was promoted in #Ukraine, Russophobia and hatred for everything Russian, including Russian-speaking citizens of the country, were cultivated
🔹Since 2017, #Ukraine has been aggressively imposing the Ukrainian language. It has been forbidden to use any language other than Ukrainian in the field of education, the public sector, the media, in the service sector.
🔹Kiev continues its Russophobic exercise. A ban was introduced on education in Russian, the import of Russian books, and the study of Russian literature. Total Ukrainization now extends to the film industry, cultural events and the media
🔹We are concerned about the legislative initiatives of Riga in the spheres of education and historical memory. Amendments to the laws "On Education" and "On General Education" will lead to the assimilation of the Russian-speaking population of this country
🔹We are surprised by the absence of mention of Estonia in the report of OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities. The Estonian language is being imposed there, the shameful phenomenon of mass statelessness and discrimination on the basis of language in the sphere of work persist, etc
🔹The HCNM needs to pay special attention to the situation in the USA and Canada, as well as other countries „to the West of Vienna”
🔹We are disappointed with the assessments, attitudes and interpretations of the root causes and objectives of Russia's compelled special military operation in #Ukraine contained in the report of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities
🔹It’s true that it’s a war in #Ukraine over the past 8 years - a disgusting war against its own population elevated by the Kyiv regime to the rank of state policy, which has become one of the main causes of the current crisis in Ukraine
🔹For many years, with the active support of #US, #EU, as well as other Western countries, violence was promoted in #Ukraine, Russophobia and hatred for everything Russian, including Russian-speaking citizens of the country, were cultivated
🔹Since 2017, #Ukraine has been aggressively imposing the Ukrainian language. It has been forbidden to use any language other than Ukrainian in the field of education, the public sector, the media, in the service sector.
🔹Kiev continues its Russophobic exercise. A ban was introduced on education in Russian, the import of Russian books, and the study of Russian literature. Total Ukrainization now extends to the film industry, cultural events and the media
🔹We are concerned about the legislative initiatives of Riga in the spheres of education and historical memory. Amendments to the laws "On Education" and "On General Education" will lead to the assimilation of the Russian-speaking population of this country
🔹We are surprised by the absence of mention of Estonia in the report of OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities. The Estonian language is being imposed there, the shameful phenomenon of mass statelessness and discrimination on the basis of language in the sphere of work persist, etc
🔹The HCNM needs to pay special attention to the situation in the USA and Canada, as well as other countries „to the West of Vienna”
❗️❗️Read the extracts from the statement of Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the OSCE Alexander Volgarev “To the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture”, (meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council, 7 July 2022):
📣Torture and other inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment is one of the most serious types of human rights violations. The sad and dishonorable leadership in this matter continues to be maintained by #US
🔸In #US "secret prisons", such "enhanced interrogation methods" as "imitation of drowning", forced stripping naked, preventing sleep, and so on were used against detainees. Similar methods are used against the prisoners of the notoriously known prison in Guantanamo
🔸Our compatriots, being in the hands of American justice, most often fraudulently through third countries, are also subjected to inhumane treatment. Without explaining the reasons, they are placed in a punishment cells, denied medical care and necessary medicines
🔺The situation in Ukraine is of particular concern. Arbitrary arrests, incommunicado detention, torture and ill-treatment of civilians have persisted there over the past eight years
🔺The perpetrators responsible for the violence on 2 May 2014 in the Odessa House of Trade Unions, where people were burned alive in front of law enforcement officials, are still unpunished
🔴Horrible, chilling footage and videos, which picture torture and murder of detained Russian soldiers in Ukraine, have been seen by the whole world. While there are no evidence to the contrary. Apart from empty words about some „credible” testimonies
📣Torture and other inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment is one of the most serious types of human rights violations. The sad and dishonorable leadership in this matter continues to be maintained by #US
🔸In #US "secret prisons", such "enhanced interrogation methods" as "imitation of drowning", forced stripping naked, preventing sleep, and so on were used against detainees. Similar methods are used against the prisoners of the notoriously known prison in Guantanamo
🔸Our compatriots, being in the hands of American justice, most often fraudulently through third countries, are also subjected to inhumane treatment. Without explaining the reasons, they are placed in a punishment cells, denied medical care and necessary medicines
🔺The situation in Ukraine is of particular concern. Arbitrary arrests, incommunicado detention, torture and ill-treatment of civilians have persisted there over the past eight years
🔺The perpetrators responsible for the violence on 2 May 2014 in the Odessa House of Trade Unions, where people were burned alive in front of law enforcement officials, are still unpunished
🔴Horrible, chilling footage and videos, which picture torture and murder of detained Russian soldiers in Ukraine, have been seen by the whole world. While there are no evidence to the contrary. Apart from empty words about some „credible” testimonies
❗️Read excerpts from the statement of Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the OSCE Alexander Lukashevich «On ongoing crimes by Ukraine against civilian population with the support of Western alliance of OSCE participating States» (meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council, 22 September 2022)
💬 The #NATO countries, led by the #US 🇺🇸 and #UK 🇬🇧, have ceased to hide their main goal - to weaken, divide and destroy #Russia 🇷🇺 #Ukraine 🇺🇦 is used as a tool for the destruction of Russian statehood. More:
💬 The current situation is a direct result of the actions of the "collective West" in #Ukraine 🇺🇦 , where since 2014 they have nurtured and maintained a bloody puppet regime, the essence of which does not depend on the change of faces of nominal leaders
💬 Russia's 🇷🇺 main goal is not to allow undermining European and global security through the situation in #Ukraine 🇺🇦 , whose inhabitants have been de facto turned into "cannon fodder" by the countries of the #Western alliance
💬 In its confrontation with #Russia 🇷🇺, the #Western alliance does not shun the dirtiest methods. Another staging about some "mass murders" in #Izium is being spun - despite the initial testimonies of journalists and local residents that nothing like this happened
💬 Ukrainian 🇺🇦 formations use 💣 weapons supplied by #NATO countries to shell civilian targets. On September 19, #French 🇫🇷 155-mm self-propelled guns "Caesar" attacked a bus stop in #Donetsk , killing at least 13 people, including 2 children. Where is the reaction of the #OSCE CiO and SG?
💬 The West's indifference to the value of human life in the #DPR and #LPR, in the #Kherson and #Zaporozhie regions is pushing the inhabitants of these regions to take decisive steps to determine their future. #Russia 🇷🇺 will respect their democratic will
💬 #Russia 🇷🇺 has never shut itself off from a mutually respectful dialogue based on equality and mutual consideration of interests. Opportunities for meaningful, result-oriented discussions, including in the #OSCE, still remain
💬 The #NATO countries, led by the #US 🇺🇸 and #UK 🇬🇧, have ceased to hide their main goal - to weaken, divide and destroy #Russia 🇷🇺 #Ukraine 🇺🇦 is used as a tool for the destruction of Russian statehood. More:
💬 The current situation is a direct result of the actions of the "collective West" in #Ukraine 🇺🇦 , where since 2014 they have nurtured and maintained a bloody puppet regime, the essence of which does not depend on the change of faces of nominal leaders
💬 Russia's 🇷🇺 main goal is not to allow undermining European and global security through the situation in #Ukraine 🇺🇦 , whose inhabitants have been de facto turned into "cannon fodder" by the countries of the #Western alliance
💬 In its confrontation with #Russia 🇷🇺, the #Western alliance does not shun the dirtiest methods. Another staging about some "mass murders" in #Izium is being spun - despite the initial testimonies of journalists and local residents that nothing like this happened
💬 Ukrainian 🇺🇦 formations use 💣 weapons supplied by #NATO countries to shell civilian targets. On September 19, #French 🇫🇷 155-mm self-propelled guns "Caesar" attacked a bus stop in #Donetsk , killing at least 13 people, including 2 children. Where is the reaction of the #OSCE CiO and SG?
💬 The West's indifference to the value of human life in the #DPR and #LPR, in the #Kherson and #Zaporozhie regions is pushing the inhabitants of these regions to take decisive steps to determine their future. #Russia 🇷🇺 will respect their democratic will
💬 #Russia 🇷🇺 has never shut itself off from a mutually respectful dialogue based on equality and mutual consideration of interests. Opportunities for meaningful, result-oriented discussions, including in the #OSCE, still remain
🎙 Read excerpts from the statement of Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the OSCE Maxim Buyakevich “On the ongoing crimes by the Kiev regime and dangerous policies of the western alliance to exacerbate tensions” (meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council, 26 January 2023)
💬 For Russians, German "Leopards" in #Ukraine, no doubt, evoke obvious historical analogies. German tanks in Ukraine will follow the fate of their predecessors of 1941-1945: they will be burnt on the battlefield
🇩🇪 On January 25 in #Strasbourg, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock publicly confirmed that the collective West is now "fighting a war against Russia." It is now obvious to everyone that aggression against Russia has been planned&prepared for a long time
🇺🇸 #US and #NATO now approached a dangerous point. Their persistent course towards escalation in military confrontation in #Ukraine is a direct path to a full-scale military conflict in #Europe
💬 For Russians, German "Leopards" in #Ukraine, no doubt, evoke obvious historical analogies. German tanks in Ukraine will follow the fate of their predecessors of 1941-1945: they will be burnt on the battlefield
🇩🇪 On January 25 in #Strasbourg, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock publicly confirmed that the collective West is now "fighting a war against Russia." It is now obvious to everyone that aggression against Russia has been planned&prepared for a long time
🇺🇸 #US and #NATO now approached a dangerous point. Their persistent course towards escalation in military confrontation in #Ukraine is a direct path to a full-scale military conflict in #Europe
Forwarded from Russian MFA 🇷🇺
🎙 Interview of Russia's President Vladimir Putin to TV host and Rossiya Segodnya Director General Dmitry Kiselev (March 13, 2024):
Key talking points
💬 Russia is not at the crossroads. It is on the strategic path of its development and will not deviate from its path.
#MultipolarWorld
• Many people in the world are looking at us, at what is happening in our country and in our struggle for our interests. <...> They associate our struggle for our independence and true sovereignty with their aspirations for their own sovereignty and independent development.
• This is aggravated by the fact that there is a very strong desire in Western elites to freeze the current unjust state of affairs in international affairs. They've spent centuries filling their bellies with human flesh and their pockets with money. But they must realise that the vampire ball is ending.
#Ukraine
• Are we ready to negotiate? We are. But we are not ready for talks that are based on some kind of ”wishful thinking“, but we are ready for talks based on the realities that have developed on the ground.
• We are open to a serious discussion, and we are eager to resolve all conflicts by peaceful means. However, we must be sure that this is not just another pause that the enemy wants to use for rearmament, but rather a serious conversation with security guarantees for Russia.
#US #RussiaUS
• We know what it is to have American troops on Russian soil. They are interventionists. That is how we will treat them even if they appear in the territory of Ukraine.
• I have said many times that it [achieving the goals of the special military operation & resolving the conflict] is a matter of life and death for us, while for them it is a matter of improving their tactical position in the world on the whole as well as maintaining their status among their allies in Europe in particular.
Read in full
Key talking points
💬 Russia is not at the crossroads. It is on the strategic path of its development and will not deviate from its path.
#MultipolarWorld
• Many people in the world are looking at us, at what is happening in our country and in our struggle for our interests. <...> They associate our struggle for our independence and true sovereignty with their aspirations for their own sovereignty and independent development.
• This is aggravated by the fact that there is a very strong desire in Western elites to freeze the current unjust state of affairs in international affairs. They've spent centuries filling their bellies with human flesh and their pockets with money. But they must realise that the vampire ball is ending.
#Ukraine
• Are we ready to negotiate? We are. But we are not ready for talks that are based on some kind of ”wishful thinking“, but we are ready for talks based on the realities that have developed on the ground.
• We are open to a serious discussion, and we are eager to resolve all conflicts by peaceful means. However, we must be sure that this is not just another pause that the enemy wants to use for rearmament, but rather a serious conversation with security guarantees for Russia.
#US #RussiaUS
• We know what it is to have American troops on Russian soil. They are interventionists. That is how we will treat them even if they appear in the territory of Ukraine.
• I have said many times that it [achieving the goals of the special military operation & resolving the conflict] is a matter of life and death for us, while for them it is a matter of improving their tactical position in the world on the whole as well as maintaining their status among their allies in Europe in particular.
Read in full