EU opening remarks, OSCE Permanent Council No. 1578 Vienna - 24 September 2026

I would like to comment on behalf of the European Union and on the following participating States: Albania, Georgia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Republic of Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, San Marino and Ukraine on the proposed AOB point raised by the Russian Federation. 

As a point of principle and out of respect for Ukraine, other participating States and this Organisation, I will not repeat the actual proposal, which does not deserve to be on this or any other agenda.

Last week we listened to the Chair's latest call for professionalism and respectful dialogue, echoed by the US, UK and others. The European Union supports the Chair's efforts. It is, therefore, a matter of the utmost regret that the delegation of the Russian Federation has clearly chosen to ignore those repeated calls and seeks to abuse the Permanent Council in this way. What is proposed by Russia is an insult to the memory of the victims and survivors of the Holocaust, a distortion of the truth and the latest misguided effort to justify its illegal and unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine.