Briefing by Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, Moscow, March 17, 2022

On March 17, 2022, Sergey Lavrov will hold talks in Moscow with Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s interview with RT

On March 18 at 11.30 am, Sergey Lavrov will have a live English language interview with the RT network on current foreign policy and international issues.

Watch it on the Ministry’s website in the Video section and its social media accounts, with simultaneous translation into Russia.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s upcoming meeting with the finalists of the Russia – Land of Opportunity international management competition

On March 19, Sergey Lavrov will meet with the finalists of the Russia – Land of Opportunity international management competition.

They will talk about current international issues, including the situation in Ukraine.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s address to MGIMO University students and faculty and meeting with MGIMO experts

On March 23, Sergey Lavrov will meet with the students and faculty of MGIMO University.

The Minister will speak about the current approach to international affairs and Russia’s foreign policy priorities, in particular, the situation in Ukraine.

He will also meet with MGIMO specialists in foreign policy and international relations.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s participation in a meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Alexander Gorchakov Public Diplomacy Fund

On March 25, Sergey Lavrov will chair a meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Alexander Gorchakov Public Diplomacy Fund held to review the Fund’s performance in 2021 and approve its action plan with due regard to the ongoing comprehensive transformation of international relations.

The Gorchakov Fund was established in 2010, on directive of President of Russia Vladimir Putin, to support public diplomacy and the involvement of NGOs in international cooperation, as well as to attract civil society institutions to foreign policy processes.

The eighth anniversary of Crimea-Russia reunification

On March 18, we are marking the eighth anniversary of Crimea’s reunification with the Russian Federation.

This year, festivities in Crimea will be held under the motto Crimean Spring: Together Forever. The motto reflects the moods of the absolute majority of Crimea residents who had to make a vitally important choice in the spring of 2014. They either had to bow low before an alien will or struggle for the right to live according to their conscience, to speak their native language, to cherish their heroes and to remember them, rather than Nazi collaborators, supporters of Stepan Bandera. This was an existential question, and it amounted to the struggle for real freedom, rather than imaginary freedom called the “democratic process” where nothing is left of genuine democracy. The destiny of freedom was decided at that time.

The people of Crimea did not flinch when faced with threats from Ukrainian nationalists and neo-Nazis at the March 16, 2014 referendum; they voted for reunification with Russia.

In the event of a different choice at that critical moment, the people of Crimea would have experienced the atrocities of Ukrainian Nazis. Such facts are now surfacing during the liberation of the territories in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions (that were controlled by the Kiev regime) during Russia’s special military operation. We can now see everything, and it is impossible to overlook the facts that have been presented to the public at large.

Whether some people like it or not, Crimea’s future is forever linked with that of Russia. We have completely closed this issue for good. No sanctions or threats, or blackmail from the United States or its satellites, which consider themselves the collective masters of the world, can change our position.

Crimea has changed drastically in the past eight years and has received a new lease of life and rhythm. Those visiting the region can confirm this. The picture is distorted if you rely on Western media outlets. People should visit, look around and enjoy the opportunities that the region presents.

The world is becoming more interested in establishing diverse ties with the peninsula. But for a purposeful subversive effort, mostly conducted by the United States using tremendous resources, the number of Crimea’s foreign partners would increase many times over.

We will continue our diplomatic and international legal work to assert the real picture of the world in the international community, including in the context of Crimea.

We congratulate the people of Crimea, Russian citizens, on our common holiday.

Presentation of brochure Twenty-Five Questions about Crimea

On March 16, 2022, a brochure titled Twenty-Five Questions about Crimea was presented at the Foreign Ministry in the run-up to these memorable dates.

These materials are now posted on the Foreign Ministry’s website and on our social media accounts. I advise foreign correspondents and anyone wishing to know the truth about the road that Crimea has travelled in the past eight years to read them.

The publication was printed in 20 languages and will be posted online. We have sent these materials to many Russian embassies.

Update on Ukraine

The special military operation continues in Ukraine. President of Russia Vladimir Putin explained in detail the main goals and objectives, once again, in yesterday’s speech.

I would like to emphasise again what the Western media and establishment bluntly refuse to see. This special operation is not aimed against civilians in Ukraine. The goal is not to seize its territory, destroy its statehood or overthrow the current president. We continue to say this over and over. We draw the Western media’s attention to this because they are distorting what is happening there. Being a propaganda tool in the hands of their politicians, the media are misinforming their own public.

We are outraged by Ukraine’s methods of warfare. On March 14, the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF) attacked central Donetsk with a Tochka-U tactical missile carrying a cluster warhead, killing and wounding dozens of people. This is a barbarous act of terror. The Kiev radicals have again shown their true face.

The tragedy of Donetsk could have happened again literally the next day. Apparently, these criminals were “inspired” by the number of victims in Donetsk and decided to repeat their “exploit.” They launched the same missiles at Makeyevka. Thanks to the efficient work of the People’s Militia, these terrible consequences were avoided. Luckily, no one died there, though some civilians were injured, including children. A 10-year-old girl received a serious eye injury. The UAF continues fighting Donbass children. Isn’t the Alley of Angels in Donetsk enough for Kiev? We are again seeing the indifferent response of the West that carefully avoided any mention of yet another atrocity by its mentees. The Western media pretended nothing happened, as if there was no mass murder of civilians. In the first minutes after the tragedy, people took photos of this awful incident on their phones.

The situation is much worse. Lying is terrible and dangerous but it can be refuted. The Western mainstream media are now dealing in more than fake news. They are distorting the perceptions of their own audience on a global scale.

What Italy’s La Stampa did yesterday is a real crime. The UAF again massacred civilians in Donetsk at the peak of the tragedy that was gaining momentum with the connivance of the NATO countries and the complete silence of the Western media. The UAF consists of nationalist battalions of people who profess neo-Nazism. The UAF are completely infected by the neo-Nazi virus.

At this moment, the Italian newspaper presented footage of the tragedy in Donetsk as a depiction of the atrocities in Kiev perpetrated by Russian troops. The world has seen many forgeries and distortions, but this is beyond the bounds of acceptability. That said, this is also a graphic example of what has been happening in the West all these years, especially the last eight years. Everything was turned upside down like a funhouse mirror: enemies were declared friends, villains glorified as heroes, and fact was replaced by fiction and lies. This was used as a foundation for making global political decisions and rewriting the modern history of the world.

Newspaper, magazine and television journalists, the Western media as a whole, will not be able to avoid responsibility for what they were doing with their own hands. Not once did they come to Donetsk or Lugansk in eight years; they only talked about Moscow’s non-compliance with the Minsk agreements and described the horrors that were allegedly perpetrated in Ukraine for eight years. In the process, they completely forgot to tell their audience that during this period, and before, Donetsk and Lugansk were part of Ukraine. They did everything they could to ignore what was happening there. They focused only on the tragedies on the Kiev-controlled side of the line. They didn’t see them on the other side. This was the norm, the status quo. This was acceptable.

It was reported yesterday that national battalions had blown up the Drama Theatre building in Mariupol, which, according to the refugees who managed to flee the city and a captured Azov militant, may have been used by the locals as a shelter. This “method” may have shocked the people who were not aware of it, but this is part of the ideology and philosophy of those who burned the Odessa House of Trade Unions. They did precisely this: locked up civilians within the walls of civilian buildings not as hostages, but as sacrifices. The House of Trade Unions in Odessa and the Drama Theatre in Mariupol are civilian sites. They lock them up and then use them as a sacrifice. You might think this is a figure of speech, but it is not, and it has deep meaning. These are the sacral victims by those who profess neo-Nazism. They believe it is something normal and the right thing to do. Sacrificing people who do not surrender to them is their “foundation.” They do not see the difference between civilians and the military. They just don’t. They are not conventional armed forces, not soldiers with proper training who gave an oath of enlistment, who understand what honour, conscience and dignity, and humanitarian law are all about, and who know history. These people were brought up on blood and are steeped in nationalism. They swore allegiance to neo-Nazism and fascism, and they wear fascist and Nazi symbols on their sleeves. Those who shot at civilians many years ago (like they are doing today) are celebrated as heroes, and their birthdays are marked as public holidays.

Without a doubt, the Kiev regime didn’t think twice before laying the blame for what happened in Mariupol (blowing up the Drama Theatre building) on the Russian military, which, as it claims, allegedly dropped an air bomb on the theatre. This is a lie. Our armed forces do not bomb urban areas. Everyone is well aware of that. No matter how many videos NATO may cook up, no matter how many fake video clips or photos they dump in cyberspace, the truth will rise to the surface no matter what. We will do our best to make sure these crimes against humanity do not go unpunished.

The Kiev regime continues to recklessly distribute weapons among anyone. According to the Ukrainian Interior Ministry, civilians have already obtained over 25,000 assault rifles, 10 million rounds of ammunition, thousands of grenades and hundreds of hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers. This information was provided by the Ukrainian Interior Ministry. Clearly, this is something they take pride in.

We are seriously concerned about the law signed by President Vladimir Zelensky that allows Ukrainians and foreign nationals to use firearms for purposes of “national resistance.” Criminals and former fighters from punitive battalions, who have actual combat experience gained in Donbass, are being released from prisons. They, however, are reticent to fight for their motherland, the regime or even those who released them. After receiving weapons “from Zelensky,” they fall into looting and attacking civilians. They simply have no shame. These people have long been dehumanised, to the extent that the Kiev regime considered it necessary to isolate them. Now they have been released on purpose. Well, why not? The people who were in charge of Ukraine have no mercy. They do not consider the people of Ukraine their fellow citizens. The more victims the better. Apparently, the Ukrainian rulers could not care less about human life. Whether they kill Russian or Ukrainian citizens makes no difference to them. Right now, they are only interested in causing more casualties. They will stop at nothing to serve their insane ideas. This is becoming clear.

We noted that Ukraine’s diplomatic missions abroad are recruiting foreign nationals to “Zelensky’s foreign volunteer corps.” ISIS ideologists would have envied this leap of imagination. Many soldiers of fortune are flocking to Ukraine, mainly through Poland – apparently, also under the aegis and direct management of people who will definitely not care about the fate of Ukrainians or Ukraine. The majority of them are consciously going into this while affirming their commitment to the “ideals” of Ukrainian neo-Nazism and their anti-Russia attitudes. The Russian Armed Forces’ targeted strike at the mercenaries’ Yavorsky training facility near Lvov brought the soldiers of fortune back down to earth. I would like to hope that this kind of preventive action will have a sobering effect on the mercenaries who are expressing their intention to go to Ukraine. This is the kind of welcome they can expect.

We see how Kiev is trying even further to intimidate the population that does not agree with its destructive anti-Russia course. A certain legislative foundation has been developed for this purpose. On March 15, President Vladimir Zelensky signed a law on collaborationism that significantly expands the punitive capabilities of Ukrainian authorities. Now they can easily shut down unwanted political parties and legal entities simply for wishing to cooperate with Russia.

Ukrainian nationalists continue to refuse to open humanitarian corridors for civilians to leave dangerous areas, despite the respective agreement reached with Kiev during Russian-Ukrainian negotiations. People are not allowed to move towards Russia; they are required to evacuate towards Western Ukraine. Those who refuse to do so get shot in the back by the nationalists. A recent example was an attack, by the nationalist battalions, on a convoy with refugees from Kharkov moving towards the east. Four people died.

In this context, the practice of tying people to posts looks even scarier. This is not a metaphor or a leap of imagination. This is reality, and it has been happening for a while, but has been escalated recently. Nationalists tie people to posts using tape and attach stickers and cards on them. But this is not the Kiev regime and Ukrainian nationalists’ attitude towards criminals who escaped punishment, not justice finally done to pedophiles or rapists; no. These are people whose ideology does not fit with the official policy. It is 2022, and the people are tied to posts and left for a crowd to deal with them using whatever methods and means they can think of. Is this normal for Europe?

In recent days, with the active assistance of the Russian Ministry of Defence, more than 31,000 people have been evacuated from Ukraine, including 250 foreign citizens (nationals of Turkey, Pakistan, Sweden, Bahrain, Egypt, Italy, Azerbaijan, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, and Tunisia), including 38 children.

Russia also continues to provide humanitarian aid to the people of Ukraine. More than 2,700 tonnes of humanitarian cargo (food, baby food, bottled water, medicines and essentials) have been delivered to communities in the Kiev, Zaporozhye, Sumy, Chernigov, Kharkov, and Kherson regions. People in the DNR and LNR are also receiving help if they need it.

Progress in Russian-Ukrainian negotiations

Negotiations continue via videoconference and focus on military, political and humanitarian aspects. Russia’s demands are extremely clear and simple. They arise from the goals and objectives of the special military operation. We hope that Kiev will finally come to realise that a peaceful solution has to be found to the problem of demilitarisation and de-Nazification of Ukraine, and its transformation into a neutral state for the benefit of the Ukrainian population and entire Europe. The sooner the representatives of the Kiev regime understand this, the sooner the special military operation will end. We call on Vladimir Zelensky government to think about the country’s future and the life of its population, to draw the right conclusions and take appropriate decisions.

The EU’s new anti-Russia sanctions

We see no need to comment separately on the latest product from the EU’s sanctions conveyor belt. Russia's position on the EU's illegitimate unilateral restrictions is very clear and has been expressed on many occasions. The leadership of the European Union and its member states continue to destroy the multilateral trade and financial system with vigour, including the transport and logistics chains that have been painstakingly created over the years. At the same time, the Brussels bureaucracy and its Anglo-Saxon handlers cynically brag that the entire international community and, above all, ordinary European citizens will have to pay for Russophobic pogroms.

The public is being told that Russia is to blame for the new reality they have to live in (inflation, fuel prices, logistical inconveniences, lack of transport coupled with coronavirus restrictions). The methods, sanctions and threats by Western countries and their governments against our country are ignored, as are the sanctions pressures that led to the tectonic shifts in the financial, economic and humanitarian sectors of the respective Western countries. Not a word about their own complicity. They have a convenient phrase: it's all Russia's fault.

No matter how much they deceive their own citizens, both in Europe and in the United States, telling them that somewhere in Russia someone is to blame for the fact that now "life is like this.” This myth won't last; it will lift like a fog. The haze will dissipate. Many people already understand who started this game, why and who wants it. Europeans and even European politicians don't need it, but they can't do anything about it. They are under pressure, they are suffering from it. Even the political movements in Europe who are in power or are in opposition, don't need this. Nobody needs it. Everybody understands that this is a destructive wave. The ones who need it are over there, across the ocean, to poison us all. This is needed to perpetually smolder in conflicts, which can be stirred up to one degree or another by throwing gunpowder on the fire. This is needed to weaken Europe, the European Union, to pit us against each other once again. To prevent us from interacting normally. This is obvious.

Ukraine was sacrificed for these purposes. A prosperous, beautiful, strong country. They played on the weaknesses of this country and on the weaknesses of its political leaders. They cynically played on people's expectations. They promised them and once again abandoned them. This is only a tool for them. They cynically, trivially, coldly, calculatingly and brutally handled Ukraine. The same is now being done to other European countries. Taxpayers and voters have yet to assess the destructive actions of the EU leaders, who are not just oriented toward the United States, they are a conduit for their will.

When a person or people, or political forces, are driven by some idea, they retain a certain degree of independence in their decision-making. These ones are not. They are simply appointed, planted and controlled from Washington with the use of different methods which anyone can see.

The decision of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe to exclude, as they said, Russia from the Council of Europe

This is part of the “the way we like it” approach. On March 15, the Russian Federation officially notified the Secretary General of the Council of Europe (CE) about its withdrawal from this organisation.

Russia made this decision on its own and initiated the corresponding legal process.

However, the following day, in a fit of impotent rage – there is no other way to describe it - the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe (CMCE) adopted a unilateral decision to expel Russia from March 16. In other words, it’s not you, Russia, that withdrew from the Council of Europe on March 15, it’s us, the Council of Europe, that expelled you from our “tightly knit” ranks on March 16. What can I say in this regard?

Yet another unfriendly move will not change anything. It shows and confirms once again that we are withdrawing from the organisation of our own accord. This belated decision by the hastily convened CMCE just saves us from having to comply with the imposed “residual” procedures and obligations.

Starting March 16, we do not consider ourselves bound by the CE conventions or other legal acts, which presuppose membership in this organisation. We have long tried to defend this organisation for its own sake, not for ourselves, not for its unilateral use by any states, but so that the true goals and objectives that underlie this international mechanism are used for the good of our continent.

We have been fighting for this organisation’s survival for a long time now. However, the subversive work, primarily, by the NATO institutions (backed by the United States) prevailed, and the rest of the CE members did not have immunity to counteract this imposed ideology of destruction, pitting countries against each other, and endless squabbles, which at some point started blocking the opportunities to strike compromises.

A joint statement by the Italian Presidency of the Committee of Ministers, the President of the Parliamentary Assembly and the Secretary General of the Council of Europe dated March 15 has come to our attention. This group of three arrogated to itself the right to talk about the allegedly infringed interests of the Russian people in connection with Russia’s withdrawal from the Council of Europe. It’s an interesting statement, indeed. Should it be understood that the Russian people’s interests were infringed only on March 15, and not even once before that? Notably, this is uttered by the people who, for decades on end, have failed to notice mass discrimination against Russians and Russian speakers in the Baltic states, who did not see not only discrimination, but persecution and murder of Russian speakers and Russians in Ukraine, turned a blind eye to the outright genocide of our compatriots in Donbass, and engaged in ideological support for NATO expansion to Russia’s borders without thinking about the interests of the Russian people, and created security threats for the very people that it is now showing concern about. Thank you, we’ll be just fine without you.

They have probably forgotten the numerous sanctions the CE member countries, whose representatives in the leadership of this organisation are now concerned about the Russian people’s interests, had adopted against our country and delivered a targeted blow to our citizens. Have you forgotten that? You regularly reconfirmed and renewed them under far-fetched pretexts. You came up with all sorts of excuses, you went from door to door complaining that they were “twisting your arms” and that you don’t have enough strength to resist, and asked for understanding and forgiveness. Did you think about the Russian people then? No, you didn’t. You never do. The only thing you ever think about is your own interests and how to take as much as possible of everything from here, including natural resources and money and how to derive more profit from the people of our country. You are not thinking about the good of your people, but about preserving your system of government, which is rotten and no longer works. All of that was designed solely with this purpose in mind. Everyone understood that a long time ago.

We cannot agree with the unfounded allegations that after Russia leaves the CE, the citizens of our country will allegedly lose access to the so-called, and I quote: “world’s most perfect system for protecting human rights.” Tell Julian Assange about it. He needs to hear positive news and he wants to have a laugh. Tell him about “the world’s most perfect system for protecting human rights.” Just say it to at least one person.

If this system were so perfect, it would not have remained blind, deaf and indifferent to tens of thousands of problems that exist within this organisation. It would have done everything to stop the bloodshed in Donbass, find words, theses and lofty ideals in order to induce the Kiev regime to comply with the Minsk agreements and to nip in the bud any manifestations of neo-Nazism in Ukraine. How? I have a simple recipe. We have repeatedly reminded you of it. There’s nothing easier than linking the payment of tranches and the issuance of loans to the Kiev regime, at least once in eight years, with the obligation to comply with the Minsk agreements. Once you comply with the first provision you receive money. Once you comply with the second provision, you receive even more money, and that's all there is to it. We are well aware of the peculiarities of the Kiev regime that lives by the “money is everything and people are nothing” principle. It would have worked well if at least someone in the Council of Europe had at least once adopted a resolution to provide an uninterrupted money flow to the Kiev elite and linked it with the implementation of the Minsk agreements. But no. We will give you a lot of money, the CE member countries (which constantly voted against the Russian people and adopted new resolutions) said, to fight corruption. Do you promise? Of course, they promised to fight corruption. Literally one week after receiving another multimillion-dollar tranche, the funds were deposited with European banks. This money was wired back, but this time to private accounts of the people affiliated with the Kiev regime. Who wasn’t aware of that? Everyone knew about it. Then, a couple of weeks later, members of the Kiev regime’s clans went to Europe to spend this money. That's all there is to it. This is a straightforward method for using the potential of this and other international organisations in order to prove that the system, including the Council of Europe, is the most perfect system around. But no one even was planning to do this, since they had different goals in mind.

As a reminder, Russia participates in the core universal international human rights treaties that were concluded within the framework of the UN. We are talking about the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and other treaties that guarantee a wider range of human rights and freedoms than regional CE documents. We will be fine, including in this sphere.

Mention of Transnistria in PACE’s document on events in Ukraine

There were many questions regarding a Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) resolution on the events in Ukraine. Moldovan leadership responded to it. PACE adopted this document on March 15 of this year. It concerns a resolution on the events in Ukraine. In addition to Ukraine, the resolution also mentions a number of other areas, including Transnistria that is referred to as a “zone of Russian occupation.”

We consider this PACE description of Transnistria unacceptable and at variance with reality. As for yet another demand by President of Moldova Maia Sandu to withdraw Russian troops from the left bank of the Dniester River, we would like to recall that a limited Russian troop contingent remains in Transnistria in accordance with the Agreement on the Principles for a Peaceful Settlement of the Armed Conflict in the Dniester Region of the Republic of Moldova of July 21, 1992. Let me add that Russian troops are performing a peacekeeping mission which has resulted in the people in this area living in peace for 30 years. They have also reliably protected the munitions depots that have been in this region since Soviet times. We are prepared to discuss practical steps for their disposal with Moldovan representatives.

US statements on bio-laboratories in Ukraine

We noted a number of comments by Western politicians in both the media and at international venues, in part, during the Russia-initiated thematic debate in the UN Security Council on March 11 of this year as regards the revealed facts of bio-military activity based at bio-laboratories in Ukraine. These activities were conducted with US support in violation of the provisions of the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC). Many people put themselves on record, primarily NATO Secretary General Yens Stoltenberg, who also commented on the chemical issue. Apparently, this exalted reaction to the Russian national document on possible chemical provocations in Ukraine has already become a tradition. This document was distributed recently at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and the UN Security Council.

This nervous, pointless reaction without any evidence only confirms that Russia’s grievances about these highly dangerous and illegal activities are well grounded. All of America’s arguments come down to a mantra: “You are Russia, you are to blame.”

Once again, we demand that Kiev and Washington provide all available information on bio-military activity in laboratories on Ukrainian territory, and take all the necessary steps to settle this issue. Don’t say anything through a microphone, don’t justify yourselves or accuse anyone. This is not necessary. Give us the documents. We held the same position on all the novichoks, Salisbury, Aylesbury and many other things. What is the problem? Was there sponsorship? Yes. On behalf of the United States and the Pentagon. Was there control by the US? Of course, there was. Nobody is denying that. Can we see the documents? What were you doing there? If there is nothing too terrible, okay, there is nothing terrible. But something tells us there is. Stubborn silence, reluctance to talk about this at international venues, concealment of facts, destruction of evidence and a nervous reaction.

We cannot rule out using the Convention’s mechanisms in articles V and VI, under which the participating states must consult each other in resolving any issues pertaining to the goal of the Convention or in connection with the implementation of its provisions and must cooperate in conducting any inquiries into potential violations of their commitments under this document.

As for US allegations that Russia has been developing programmes on biological weapons for a long time, we can only interpret this as an attempt to divert the attention of the international community from the US’s own unseemly steps in this sensitive area (including outside its national borders), which it took in circumvention of the Convention. The information on Russian bio-facilities that we provide annually as part of the Convention’s confidence-building measures proves our commitment to this document and shows the strictly peaceful character of all of Russia’s bio-activity. The United States refuses to provide such information on its bio-military activities abroad.

Items found at the bases of right-wing extremist formations of the armed forces of Ukraine

Our colleagues from the Foreign Ministry of the DPR shared photos of items they had found in the liberated territories of Donbass. Artefacts found at the bases of right-wing extremist formations of the armed forces of Ukraine came to our attention. In particular, there was a diary kept by V. Sulyev, platoon commander of the 24th Aidar separate assault battalion of the 53rd separate mechanised brigade of the armed forces of Ukraine. It was found in the village of Starognatovka (outside Volnovakha, Donetsk People's Republic) in late February. Military texts, with diagrams drawn in keeping with NATO standards, are lavishly adorned with neo-Nazi symbols. According to the document, on February 14, 2022, the unit led by V. Sulyev was trained to use anti-tank grenade launchers, which were made in Sweden and delivered to Ukraine via Great Britain, and prepared positions for the launchers’ use.

For those who are unaware or may have forgotten, since 2014, the Aidar battalion has left a bloody trail of mass crimes against civilians in Donbass. The trail is horrendous to the point that even human rights activists from Amnesty International, known for their selective approach, were forced to issue a high-profile report describing the atrocities committed by Aidar punishers. Do you have any idea about how often we have talked about this? We published these data and reports, provided quotes and read out these materials.

I have a question for the people, including Russian journalists, who are now devoting so much time to lamenting about their life coming to an end. Where were you? Where were your articles? Where were your posts on social media? Where was your personal civic position on this matter? There was nothing to show and not because there was no information or because you were not interested in it. You couldn't have missed it. We told you about this. It’s just that you didn’t need it and it was beyond your scope of interest. This could have thrown you out of balance, because you would have needed to respond and entertain the very thought that the atrocities were being committed in Europe with regard to representatives of our common people.

There were citizens of our country and families that had already either obtained a residence permit in our country, or citizenship, or their families remained there. We reported this every week. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov spoke about this, many of your Russian journalist colleagues spoke about this as well. They went there and came back as different people, because they had seen it all. Where were your posts and what was your civil position regarding the fact that your life was over? No, it wasn’t that. Your life, the lives of those who did not see it then, ended with the closure of McDonald's restaurants, because their lives were all about McDonald's and revolved around a bun and a big mac.

The photographs of the insignia of the SS Medvedi subversive assault group that were found in early March in the vicinity of the town of Shirokino, towards Mariupol, leave no doubt about who the Donbass militia and the Russian military have to deal with during denazification of Ukraine. They were using the people of Mariupol as a human shield amid the loud buzz of the Western media, providing them with information cover. Neo-Nazis do not allow people to use humanitarian corridors and take women, children and elderly people hostage.

The flag features an abbreviation for the Waffen SS, a Nazi organisation that the Nuremberg Trials declared criminal. You can also see an inscription Meine Ehreheißt Treue which is German for “My honour is called loyalty.” What is that about? It is also a motto of the SS. Are you saying this was made up as well? No, all of this is true and has been happening all these years. No one was paying attention to this, that’s true. It was “out there” somewhere. It was about some civilians who do not deserve compassion.

By the way, this motto is illegal in Germany and Austria, those very countries that are now sympathising with “these” people, talking about supplying various weapons, never mind money. Money has been pouring in for many years now.

It would not be an overstatement to say that, in Ukraine, the German Panzerfaust anti-tank weapons have again fallen into “trustworthy” Nazi hands and are being used under Nazi banners. This fact does not bother anyone in Berlin or other Western capitals. Right. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said at the Munich Security Conference that the fact that in Russia the situation in Donbass was called genocide is, of course, “ridiculous.” How long is he going to laugh, I wonder?

UN Secretariat's position on the situation in Ukraine

The position of the UN Secretariat on the situation in Ukraine cannot help but cause alarm. It is regrettable that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and other representatives of the UN Secretariat are deviating more and more from an impartial position concerning ongoing events in that country.

The Secretariat’s leadership continues to make one-sided accusations against Russia, ignoring the responsibility of the Kiev authorities for the current situation. There have even been absurd claims that our armed forces are all but intentionally destroying civilian facilities and infrastructure in Ukraine. Meanwhile, the silence over the shelling of the DPR and LPR by the Ukrainian armed forces is deafening. No one wants to see the civilians who have been killed or wounded. They do not exist. They have been "erased" from the media and from memory. I am not even talking about the past eight years, it's as if they never happened.

We call on the Secretary General and his subordinates to resume acting in accordance with the status of international civil servant, which implies an equidistant position that consists of seeking to facilitate opportunities for dialogue and cooperation. Only this equidistance should not lead to indifference, but objectivity. It is impossible not to see what is right in front of your eyes.

Situation around the safety of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant

Recently, representatives of the Kiev regime, including the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine, planted a number of false stories on the situation around the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. These reports have nothing to do with reality. We have already refuted Kiev’s statements. They are complete misinformation. Once again, we would like to highlight the following aspects.

The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant was taken over by the Russian military in such a way that it would not damage its safety. An agreement has been reached with the servicemen of the Ukrainian detached station security unit to jointly ensure the safety of the power units and the sarcophagus. Background radiation there is normal, and has been confirmed, including by the IAEA.

Nevertheless, units controlled by the Kiev regime are carrying out provocations. They are aimed at creating an emergency situation in this zone. Specifically, on March 9, the Ukrainian armed forces damaged the power transmission line that feeds the cooling system of the spent nuclear fuel storage facility located at the nuclear power plant site. The line has now been restored.

Provocations like this are used by Western countries to stir up the anti-Russia hysteria at various international organisations, in particular at the IAEA, and to foment Russophobia among their own people.

The consequences of this sabotage were promptly overcome: reserve diesel generators were connected, and later the power supply was resumed via the permanent Belarussian power system.

We intend to continue to make every effort to ensure the safety of this facility.

Attacks against their own nuclear facilities have already become a "calling card" of the ruling regime in Ukraine. The blame for this lies entirely with Kiev, Vladimir Zelensky’s American masters, and the US’s vassals at NATO. Without this support, these provocations would have lost all meaning. No one would have written about it at all. Now we see what is happening. The entire information and political campaign is being orchestrated first, and later it is fed back into the Western media.

The political adventurers in the West encourage Zelensky's actions and endanger the lives of not only Ukrainian and Russian citizens, but of all Europe.

Recruitment of Japanese citizens for combat operations in Ukraine

I have repeatedly spoken about the efforts by Ukrainian diplomatic missions to recruit the citizens of various countries to participate in combat operations in Ukraine. I would like to dwell in greater detail on Japanese citizens.

According to Japanese media reports, the Ukrainian Embassy in Tokyo is recruiting Japanese citizens to take part in hostilities in Ukraine. The Japanese authorities do not actually stop such activities, limiting themselves to general recommendations to refrain from visiting that country. There is nothing surprising here. This is not the first time in its history that Tokyo has supported neo-Nazi forces like this. Perhaps this is the result of poorly conducted denazification. It is hard to avoid the question of how independent Japan is as a legal entity in the system of international relations. First, it unreservedly lags behind in the information and sanctions war that the US and the EU have unleashed against Russia, and then it allows foreign representatives, in the guise of diplomats, to recruit Japanese citizens as foreign mercenaries on its own territory.

We haven't heard of Japan having a common border with Ukraine. We haven't seen the latest Oxford and British Foreign Office recommendations on the subject. It's different with geography there sometimes, but Japan and Ukraine don't share a border. Japan has nothing to worry about; this is not their story. It has nothing to do with them.

We would like to warn that, in any case, only the Japanese side will be responsible for the lives of its compatriots who are cynically lured into a war zone by their Ukrainian "friends."

A diplomatic complaint by the Foreign Ministry of Albania over damage inflicted on the Albanian Honorary Consulate building in Kharkov

We noted that the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs of Albania had denounced the alleged strikes by the Russian forces on March 6 that damaged the country’s honorary consulate building in Kharkov, Ukraine.

We resolutely deny these accusations. As soon as the special operation in Ukraine began, we said clearly that Russian armed forces were not shelling civilian facilities in an effort to avoid civilian casualties.

Unfortunately, the Ukrainian authorities and the Ukrainian Armed Forces command are practicing an opposing presentation and are resorting to terrorist tactics, such as deploying firing positions and armaments in residential districts that are used to shell urban areas. Hiding behind a living shield, they deliberately provoke casualties among civilians. In addition, the Ukrainian military are also preventing civilians from safely escaping through the humanitarian corridors initiated by Russia, including from Kharkov, and are threatening those willing to flee from dangerous areas with reprisals.

It is these actions and inhumane tactics that must be condemned as crimes against people. We demand impartial assessments and telling people the truth.

Timeline of crimes committed by the United States and Great Britain

All those who are now screaming from all corners, shrieking, planting and spinning misinformation could well spare some time for turning their gaze inwards. I know the Western tactic quite well: history is meaningless, something expendable. Why then appeal to the past? There is definitely no need to look back. But let me help you with this.

I would like to present a new section on our website where we will publish detailed information on the war crimes committed by the United States and Great Britain around the world, as well as their other offences, in a chronological order. While historians and international relations experts already know this quite well, this section will allow a wider public to discover this information. The Western media seldom mention these facts, and when they do, they tend to cherry-pick stories of “heroism” that fit their narrative. We know why. Every one of these episodes in world history not only puts into question the West’s “democratising” potential and mission, but totally strips Washington, London and those who assisted them in these operations of any right to pose as moral beacons or judges for other countries and nations. These examples demonstrate how they drowned half of the world in blood.

Yesterday was 54 years since the tragedy in Sơn Mỹ, a Vietnamese village, where US soldiers killed 567 civilians. We have already covered this topic and published an article on it.

Let me share several other examples for those who fail to remember their endeavours.

On March 24, 1999, NATO launched its military operation code-named Operation Allied Force against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The ultimatum to the Serbian troops to withdraw immediately all their forces from Kosovo and Metohija, legitimate Serbian territories, served as a formal pretext for the invasion. The operation consisted of extensively bombing the Serbian troops in Kosovo and other targets on Serbian territory, including residential neighbourhoods, television and radio broadcasting facilities, hospitals, factories and businesses, as well as infrastructure. Apart from the United States, 14 NATO countries took part in the operation. During the air strikes, they used banned ordnances with radioactive substances, mostly depleted uranium. The bombing caused heavy damage to civilian sites destroying 82 railroad and motor bridges, 48 hospitals, 25 post office and telegraph stations, 70 schools, nine university buildings and four student dormitories, 18 kindergartens, 35 churches and 29 monasteries, including UNESCO-protected heritage sites, a television centre in Belgrade, a convoy of Albanian refugees, as well as the building of China’s embassy in Serbia.

According to the Serbian government, the bombing killed around 2,500 people, including 89 children, and wounded 12,500. Some 863,000 people, primarily Serbs living in Kosovo, left the region, and another 590,000 became forced refugees. There was no definitive assessment of the damage inflicted on industrial, transport and civilian infrastructure in Yugoslavia, with estimates ranging from $30 billion to $100 billion.

The Independent International Commission on Kosovo, created on August 6, 1999, at the initiative of Prime Minister of Sweden Goran Persson to investigate war crimes committed by NATO’s leadership in Yugoslavia, came to the conclusion that NATO’s military intervention was illegal, since the alliance failed to receive a mandate from the UN Security Council. The commission criticised NATO for using cluster munitions, as well as bombing chemical factories and oil refineries in Yugoslavia considering the grave impact on the environment. In March 2002, the UN confirmed that NATO’s bombing caused radioactive pollution in Kosovo.

We must emphasise the use of depleted uranium bombs. They contain radioactive elements, which led to an explosive increase in cancer rates in today’s Serbia. Do you remember what a Ukrainian journalist said on television recently? He was on the air when he called for killing Russian citizens, including children and their families, because “there is no other way to exterminate a nation.” Same logic, isn’t it? Radioactive bombs are a way to exterminate a nation because they target those who will remember, who will live on and perpetuate the memory, rather than those on whom they fall. NATO already had this logic back in 1999, and the Kiev regime, those who swore allegiance to it and who lead it have now adopted the same logic. Same people, same structures.

We posted a video in our social media accounts in which Joe Biden is not yet a US President, but a person who is actively involved in international politics in the 1990s. Speaking in Congress, he boasts that he was the one who suggested bombing Belgrade. Here’s an interesting thing: Joe Biden made this statement during Congress hearings back in 1998, before the actual bombing took place. Why? His rationale consisted of saying that bombing Belgrade would have saved 200,000 people who died during what happened across former Yugoslavia at the time. He suggested bombing the capital and civilians for preventing the killing of other people. Joe Biden is now once again involved in international politics. Has he changed his principles or methods? Are they all the same, or have they changed? This is a good question. The bloodshed in Donbass continued for eight years, with mass graves, murdered children and civilians, and huge refugee flows.

On March 20, 2003, the invasion of Iraq started, code-named Operation Iraqi Freedom. Having invaded Afghanistan and ousted the Taliban from power, the United States focused on Iraq, accusing the country’s leadership of working with al-Qaeda and developing WMDs. Information from US intelligence pointed the other way, but the George W. Bush administration ignored this. Kuwait served as a bridgehead for launching the offensive after the Turkish parliament categorically refused to offer its territory for this unfortunate undertaking. Ground forces were deployed almost immediately, without extensive air strikes. They did not encounter any meaningful resistance. On April 9, Baghdad fell without a fight, and on April 15, Tikrit, signalling the end of active hostilities. The confrontation evolved into a guerrilla war.

According to official statistics, the United States lost 149 people in the first 21 days of active warfare, while the civilian death toll was around 7,300. Here’s an interesting fact: Washington attacked Iraq without a formal declaration of war. There was no UN Security Council mandate, despite the many years during which the US “besieged” the council to grant it authorisation, but it never came. They did try though. It is not that they showed photos, or listed casualties among children or civilians. They simply showed up with strange vials and then walked away. George W. Bush ordered his troops to attack this country. For no particular reason. There was nothing there to threaten the United States. There was no one to save there, either. There were no conflicting sides. The US does not even share a border with Iraq. They made it all up. According to the WHO, some 151,000 Iraqis died in the violence that engulfed the country between the start of the operation and mid-2006. This is just an aggregated estimate of the confirmed cases. NGOs believe that there were hundreds of thousands or even millions in civilian casualties. Let me remind you that the coalition included Great Britain, Australia and Poland. Moreover, Ukraine was also in it. Could you remind us, what were you doing in Iraq?

On March 19, 2011, a NATO military coalition launched an invasion of Libya, which resulted in regime change and the killing, with great relish, of its legitimate leader, Muammar Gaddafi (we remember Washington’s reaction very well). It broke the country apart. Libya posed no threat to anyone. It does not border on the US or any other countries from the coalition. Even before the destruction of its statehood, that country was already attacked by NATO countries. Instead of interfering in its domestic affairs, they orchestrated internal conflicts and discord.

The United States interfered in the Libyan civil war on the side of the rebels against the Muammar Gaddafi regime by perverting UN Security Council Resolution 1973. It provided for a no-fly zone over Libya, and NATO countries used it for bombing, instead of protecting civilians. What a simple, cynical and brutal approach.

France, Great Britain and Canada initially backed the Americans, and later NATO assumed the operation command. The US called its part of the invasion Operation Odyssey Dawn. It provided for shelling military targets without deploying armed forces on the ground. It ended on October 31 with Muammar Gaddafi’s ousting and his terrifying murder. Unfortunately, the footage of his murder is in the public domain. What an unbearable sight. All this shattered Libyan statehood and resulted in a refugee crisis in Europe that has been going on for many years now.

Vandalism at the Soviet cemeteries in Poland

Unfortunately, regular reports of vandalism against the Soviet cemeteries in Poland are becoming a routine. They are no longer occasional incidents. There has been an avalanche of barbaric attacks in Poland recently.

Between March 4 and 6, paint was poured over an obelisk at the cemetery of Soviet soldiers in Poznan (Greater Poland Voivodeship). Polish media report that at a Soviet cemetery in Lubawa (Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship), unidentified perpetrators removed the red star from an obelisk and, in the early morning of March 6, they covered the obelisk with a bedsheet. In the early hours of March 9, an act of vandalism, allegedly using an excavator, was committed in the Soviet section of the city cemetery in Koszalin (West Pomeranian Voivodeship), destroying the central monument. We are receiving reports of vandalism at a Soviet cemetery in Wroclaw (Lower Silesian Voivodeship) and other areas.

We would like this deplorable situation to come to the attention of other Polish officials who claim, on a regular basis, that Poland treats local cemeteries with great care and feel offended that we do not notice that. We do notice – but not the rosy picture that Warsaw is trying to present in the media and in contacts with Russia, but the actual state of affairs in all their ugliness.

We submit complaints to Polish officials following each incident. Warsaw can either respond and take the necessary steps or, as it usually does, simply let this go, thus confirming that these are not just occasional incidents but Poland’s consciously chosen policy of state-encouraged vandalism.

We cannot respond in kind on this matter but certain practical conclusions will be made.

Expulsion of Russian diplomats from Slovakia

We are disappointed by yet another unfriendly step by Slovak officials who decided to expel three members of Russian diplomatic missions under contrived pretexts within 72 hours.

Apparently, in its attempt to catch up with the other unfriendly Western countries, Bratislava got down to stirring up an anti-Russian campaign with similar obsessiveness and no clear understanding of the consequences. In view of the West demonising relations with Russia, this policy of consciously aggravating the bilateral track is making the situation worse and degrading our cooperation.

Obviously, Slovakia’s decisions will not be left without a response.

Answers to media questions:

Question: The Polish prime minister has proposed using frozen Russian assets to rebuild Ukraine. What measures will the Foreign Ministry of Russia take in this event?

Maria Zakharova: This is a new element of Polish Russophobia. A victim of Russophobic hysterics, Prime Minister of Poland Mateusz Morawiecki has proposed confiscating the frozen assets of the Russian state and oligarchs and turning them over to the “victims of the regime.”

It would be pointless to speak about the absurdity and illegality of such inventions. Western leaders are increasingly blatantly demonstrating their disregard for the norms of international law, common sense and humanity. Bent on attaining their goals, they are ready to cut the last links connecting them to civilisation. According to the Western architects, this is probably how the world based on their rules must look. It is a further step towards open plunder. What next? Will they permit open violence against civilians?

On the one hand, it is surprising that private property is being seized, and that official agencies and governments wholeheartedly approve this. On the other hand, five Russian properties have been seized, or hijacked, in the United States since 2016. It was not done by vandals but by the American government.

Children are not allowed to say that they are boys or girls. They are told that they will be able to choose their gender identity when they come of age. A look at the chain of events points to a clear trend: equivocation and saying that black is white and white is black. Look at the developments in their totality. What kind of a world is it in which you can’t call dad, dad and mum, mum, or say that a woman is a woman? This is not a defined concept but gender diversity, where people can choose how to identify themselves.

In light of this, it is not surprising that property has ceased to be property. This step is logical, compared to everything else. But it is horrible when you think about where the world has arrived.

Question: What is Russia’s goal at the talks with Ukraine in terms of signing legally binding or declarative documents? Will it be a package of documents or a single agreement? Is Russia considering involving other countries as the guarantors of a possible agreement?

Maria Zakharova: I cannot disclose the essence of the talks. This wouldn’t be right. The situation is complicated: the talks are being held during the active phase of the special operation. There are negotiators, the members and leaders of the delegations who make comments on the outcome of each round of the talks.

As for the end result, I have already spoken on this issue today. The Russian leadership has openly announced our goals and targets. They are clear. The talks are being held to formulate them in a relevant format. Any other details regarding this can only be learned from members of the Russian delegation.

Question: What would Russia do if Ukraine accepts all the Russian demands? How would Russia develop relations with the world, which will most likely continue to condemn it as an “aggressor”? Does Moscow hope that this sentiment will change after a settlement in Ukraine?

Maria Zakharova: The collective West is not the world. These are two different things. There is the West and its bosses, namely the Anglo-American duo, and there is the world in its diversity and many countries that have their own views on many issues.

As for the special operation, we are not the first or last to have a tough time. Many countries have seen even worse troubles. This is life. The current situation was not created by us. We did everything in our power to prevent it, including by making every diplomatic effort possible.

But the other party had a different mission. The programme was put into effect. Ukraine was being supplied with weapons, huge amounts of military equipment, money and provisions. There were political indoctrination and information propaganda campaigns. At the same time, we were acting clearly to prevent that negative scenario. But the stakes of the other side were obviously so high that it didn’t think about the future of Ukraine or even Europe as a whole. Or is this the future that had been prepared for them?

The West has discontinued all talks and shut down all mechanisms for possible interaction. It inspired Ukraine by making incredible promises and created real threats by means of a horrible slaughter that continued for the last eight years in Ukraine and the region [of Donbass].. We have documents to prove this. We spoke about that; we did not keep our information secret; we made entreaties and kept working on the matter. Until the very last day, we had been using all the negotiating possibilities on the foreign policy stage. Our efforts were rejected.

Don’t think that the “order” for the anti-Russia hysterics was given after February 24, 2022. This is not so. This “order” was being implemented for years in many spheres. Was it yesterday that Russian television networks were banned? No, this happened many times over the past decades. Were Russian journalists not persecuted before? Yes, they were, but everything has come to a head now. All this has happened before. There have been economic sanctions and stop lists. The current stage is noted for an impotent rage. This went on for years. Was there equality in sports? Was there appropriate and equal interaction and cooperation on visa issues? No. Did we have equal rights in the history of global energy? We wanted to sell our resources at prices that suited all negotiating sides. We were prevented from doing this for years. Nord Stream 2 was scheduled to come into operation several months ago. There was no aggravation at the time, only talks and an open dialogue from our side.

Don’t think that this is because of the special operation that the collective West has chosen this tactic towards Russia and has started encouraging other countries to follow suit. This is not the case. It was a simmering situation that sometimes became aggravated, but we lived like this for years.

I have an important point to make. The situation that is presented as global solidarity [against Russia] is being achieved through pressure, blackmail and direct threats. Many political leaders have openly stated that they are being forced to take such decisions. This could result in a global imbalance of forces. Washington’s desire to force everyone to accept its view on the situation could push the world towards a really dangerous edge. The balance of interests could be destroyed. The world cannot live under the domination of one state. This is unacceptable in ordinary life or in global processes. There must be a balance of interests. The only alternative to this is a catastrophe.

Don’t think that it began on February 24, 2022. We have been living like this for a very long time. Although much of what was being done to us called for a clear, harsh reaction, we continued to call for talks and dialogue. We remained patient for a long time.

Question: Does the Foreign Ministry have any knowledge about plans by Russian companies, primarily banks, to begin operations in the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics?

Maria Zakharova: Our priority there is to establish peace and have the shelling stop. Let’s assume that this must be achieved. Everything else will be dealt with as we go along. Look at the documents that have been signed between Russia, the LPR and the DPR. They describe most areas of interaction. These documents have international legal status.

Question: President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky asked the US Congress to supply S-300 systems and other air defence systems to Ukraine as an alternative to a no-fly zone over Ukraine. How do such statements correlate with the ongoing peace or ceasefire talks between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations?

Maria Zakharova: This fits perfectly with Vladimir Zelensky’s absolutely thoughtless and inhumane policy towards his own people and Ukraine. These statements are extremely dangerous. As representatives of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Executive Office stated, such supplies will become a destabilising factor and will do anything but bring peace to Ukraine. It may have more dangerous consequences in the long term.

Question: Is there any indication of progress in these talks going on right now? And is there concern that the Ukrainian side isn’t acting in good faith?

Maria Zakharova: You sound like we might lose you to theories, so I would bring you a little closer to down-to-earth matters.

I think that the very fact that negotiations are going on is an indication of progress. I cannot comment on what is being discussed there without disclosing the subject of the negotiations. But it is a closed-door meeting.

We assume, however, that the negotiations themselves, their progress, is an indication that the process is underway. This is progress. I can’t go into detail. As soon as we are able to report something, this is immediately done through the negotiators.

Question: Russia has repeatedly stated its desire to resolve the Ukraine crisis through diplomacy. However, the parties have been unable to reach an agreement for almost three weeks. What do you think is hindering positive progress in the Russian-Ukrainian talks? How long do you think the talks might take before any document is signed?

Maria Zakharova: I do not think this is something to be projected. The parties are negotiating, not just exchanging opinions. This is about achieving mutually acceptable approaches on a whole range of most complex matters. I can’t just give you any dates or prospects.

Question: With the increasingly frequent cases of overt Russophobia and xenophobia against Russians in Western countries, has the Russian Foreign Ministry had any requests from Russian citizens who left Russia in the 1990s or later and who wish to return now? If so, will Russia unfold a new programme for the return of compatriots? Or is the existing one enough?

Maria Zakharova: Russia launched a state programme in 2007 to assist voluntary relocation of compatriots living abroad to the Russian Federation. As many as 80 constituent regions have regional relocation programmes to support participants in the state programme and their family members. Compatriots are entitled to social benefits and the support measures included in the state programme. According to the programme coordinator – the Ministry of the Interior – more than 1 million people have moved to Russia. In 2021, interest in participating in the State Programme for compatriots living abroad increased by more than 60 percent.

We believe the state programme’s potential is far from being exhausted and its mechanisms can be adapted to new realities. We are working on this.

The current situation concerning Ukraine does pose additional challenges though. Whatever the American propaganda says about Ukrainians supposedly travelling to the European Union only, this is absolutely not true. You probably know about the situation in the neighbouring regions better than I do.

We have been receiving requests, through our embassies, from people who have crossed the western part of Ukraine and into Poland, etc. They are asking our diplomatic missions for help to reach the Russian Federation. They are afraid of the nationalists, they know what is happening there and how, given that this nationalism bacillus has already spread beyond Ukraine. We receive regular requests for help, from groups of people and individuals. This is a whole new element of the work.

Question: Russia said that it has found over 30 biological laboratories funded or supported by the United States in Ukraine. And the Russian State Duma also said it’s going to launch a parliamentary investigation into this information so we just wonder if there are any new findings or evidence regarding these labs?

Maria Zakharova: On March 11, deputies of the Russian State Duma called on the UN and the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly to investigate the activities of the biological laboratories in Ukraine.

According to our information, an appropriate parliamentary expert group is currently being set up. We hope that Russophobia, which has now overwhelmed many international platforms, will not prevent the world from seeing real threats. There are bio-labs in a country that has not been controlled through democratic procedures by its citizens for many years, but has been administered from the outside by the US Defence Department – this is a true threat to countries that are in close proximity to Ukraine. It is not only about the bio-labs in Ukraine. The reach is more impressive. Such American biological laboratories are also located in Central Asia, Georgia and other countries. In this particular case the situation is aggravated by the fact that for many years, there was no democratic power in Ukraine, but there was external control by a number of states, primarily the United States and NATO. These laboratories worked in conjunction with the Pentagon.

For our part, we do not rule out the possibility of invoking Articles 5 and 6 of the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC), which say the State Parties must consult with each other in resolving any issues regarding the purpose of the Convention or the implementation of its provisions, and must cooperate in any investigation into possible violations of obligations under BTWC.

We will promptly inform the public about any new facts regarding military biological activities carried out in circumvention of the BTWC at Ukrainian-American biological facilities.

Question: Foreign Minister Lavrov has stressed yesterday that the investigation has to be conducted within the framework of the Biological Weapons Convention, the BWC. But we all know that the United States has been rejecting a protocol that would enhance the BWC, for decades, actually. So what is Russia’s plan to deal with that?

Maria Zakharova: The German newspaper Bild has published fake news, an item according to which last night Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was halfway to Beijing on an unannounced mission when his plane turned around over Novosibirsk. According to the German newspaper, it is unclear if China refused to meet him or if the President of Russia called him back to Russia. This is blatant fake news by Western propaganda regarding Russia-China relations. We have seen this before. They are trying to set us against each other. We will not permit this.

I would like to point out in this context that the Western media are publishing a great deal of fake news about our bilateral relations.

We have made numerous statements regarding serious risks to our security from the establishment of biological laboratories sponsored by the US Defence Department in neighbouring countries. Such biological labs were established in direct proximity to our border to collect for the United States region-specific strains of dangerous microorganisms which can spread to humans, to study local human biomaterials, and to use them for research into potential biological weapons that will target certain ethnic groups.

We have been speaking about this for ages. We demanded that specialists be given access to look into the operations of these laboratories, for example, in Georgia.

The United States has been doing this on a large scale. Under the pretext of public health assistance, the Pentagon has been building and modernising microbiological laboratories in the former Soviet republics. The build-up of the military biological operations by the United States and its allies beyond their national borders is highly questionable in the context of compliance with the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC). Since the convention does not have a verification mechanism, the creation of which has been hindered by the United States since 2001, it is impossible to monitor the procedure and levels of the involvement of such laboratories in US secret research projects. This shows that the Americans are not just conducting prohibited operations but are also preventing specialised international institutions from inspecting their prohibited actions to create biological weapons.

We have been consistently advocating the strengthening of the BTWC regime. In particular, we called for resuming work on a legally binding protocol on an effective verification mechanism to the convention, and obliging the States Parties to include information about their military biological activities outside the national territory into their annual reports within the framework of confidence-building measures. It is notable that the United States has refused to provide this information.

Question: Biden’s national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, was threatening China with consequences for any actions capable of reducing the sanctions pressure on Russia. Would you care to comment?

Maria Zakharova: A Sullivan is not yet born that can threaten great nations like Russia and China. This is the classic arrogance and insolence that the US political elite have indulged in in recent times. I can’t call it anything else.

People are no longer surprised by the patronising tone and threats from high-ranking US officials. Rather, people are outraged. Most importantly, the Americans are torpedoing any possibility of continuing a dialogue with them in the previous formats. We regard Mr Sullivan’s remarks as yet another manifestation of imperialism and Washington’s hegemonic ambitions, as well as an attempt to interfere in the internal affairs of sovereign countries and to make arbitrary use of illegal restrictions that are at variance with the basics of the international relations system.

Any sanctions will inevitably backfire on the initiators. This is illustrated by the example of the many countries that have begun introducing sanctions against Russia and are now facing consequences that affect their own citizens. The US’s current steps will eventually fail to lead to a stronger American-centric economic globalisation model and will only push the process of its disintegration.

We would like to stress that the Russian-Chinese relations of comprehensive partnership and strategic interaction are intrinsically valuable by nature. As we constantly emphasise, they have strong inner motivation and are unaffected by the current international situation. Relations with third countries (specifically with the United States) have no critical effect on them. Faced with these new international realities, both countries have no alternative to continuing to strengthen their relations.

Question: Russia has expanded its list of “unfriendly” countries. What does this mean in terms of foreign missions in Russia and the Russian missions in those countries?

Maria Zakharova: This doesn’t bode well for them.

Question: Josep Borrell has recently mentioned “unfulfilled promises” regarding Kiev’s EU membership and accession to NATO. What is the future of Russia-EU relations and how can they benefit Russia?

Maria Zakharova: This is not about unfulfilled promises. Why is he raising this subject right now? What he wants is to shun the responsibility. This had nothing to do with unfulfilled promises. This is a false message. These promises could not be fulfilled to begin with. “Some promises are never meant to be kept,” as the saying goes. That fully applies here. It is not that they failed to deliver on their promises. It is not that something went wrong along the way. They knew that they would not do this. Still, they kept lying. How many times did we say this?

We kept saying that they had no plans to engage Ukraine, its economy or people in any integration process. NATO treated Ukraine as a tool (treating the EU as an independent actor would be a mistake, as is now clear). This is what makes all this so cynical. There was nothing behind the façade of high-sounding, beautiful and very interesting discussions on integrating Ukraine and making it part of some kind of a “civilisational whole” or offering it incredible opportunities. All they wanted was to use this country as a staging ground, as a tool, to exert pressure. No one in the West cared about the cost of doing this. All they sought was to fulfil their fanatical ideas to contain Russia. This also describes the overall attitude of the United States towards the European continent, as strange as it may sound. For some reason, at this point in history, the United States did not see a way to benefit from this connection or interaction that would guarantee progressive peaceful coexistence for decades to come.

American presidents have long said that they needed to bring the European countries together in a single “choir,” immune to internal discord, conflict, war, etc. This is what their long-term European policy was all about. It might seem that the US invested heavily in delivering on this vision. Launched 50 years ago, USSR energy cooperation brought us closer to the Western European countries and created a single artery, an organism that we formed together. This was the largest project to integrate our industrial development, our economies despite the differences in our systems of government. This was an attempt to adopt a global perspective on European unity while preserving diversity. This was a very interesting experiment.

However, the United States had to cut this artery without thinking, to continue the metaphor, no matter how much blood might be lost. Nord Stream 2, mutually beneficial energy cooperation – they killed everything. For some reason, what they wanted at this stage was to destabilise the situation on the European continent.

Political analysts have suggested quite a few possible explanations, suggesting that this could reflect the ongoing crisis on the American continent, or the failure of the West-centric liberal development model that grew in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, gained some momentum and then hit a roadblock, leading everyone into an impasse. Regardless of speculation, forecast or analysis, there is no escaping the fact that Ukraine received all these promises when everyone already knew what role it would be assigned. The fact that Ukraine failed to heed our calls and realise that it was being used is a different matter. They pushed Ukraine too far in its anti-Russia hysteria. We can frame the issue Ukraine faced in a very precise manner: its Western patrons sought to turn it into an anti-Russia. On the face of it, this idea may seem quite startling, or even “impossible” in today’s world, but it illustrates what was happening with Ukraine very accurately.

It is hard to tell what prompted the head of European diplomacy to speak in public about whether there were reasons to promise Ukraine (and Georgia) NATO membership at NATO’s summit in Bucharest in 2008. I will ignore why he chose to raise this subject today. He does not write all his speeches on his own. Texts bearing his name are typically written by someone else.

Until recently, EU officials kept reassuring us that they had nothing to do with NATO. Of course, I do understand that the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy must have all the processes on his radar screen, including NATO. He has a friend, a partner and a brother in the person of the NATO Secretary-General, who could definitely contribute to this debate. However, for some reason they keep switching roles. I think they have simply formed a single whole. Seems that all these assurances that the EU and NATO are two totally different structures are a myth, a fiction.

Let me remind you that during the interview you mentioned with TF1, the French television network, Josep Borrell made another confession when he said that the European Union has not done enough to build closer ties with Russia. That depends on how you look at this. On the one hand, it is hard to argue with that, while on the other, this position somewhat blurs the overall picture and allows the EU to avoid its responsibility. The EU did not do enough to build closer ties with Russia, but it did quite a bit to shut itself off from Russia, sever ties and complicate as much as possible a regular dialogue let alone any attempt to build closer ties. They did not do enough to integrate Ukraine, just as they did not build closer ties with Russia as much as they should have. But they knew from the outset that they would not integrate Ukraine. They did whatever they could to not meet Russia halfway. On the contrary, they sought to create as many challenges as possible in their conversation with Russia in all spheres. Just look at Federica Mogherini’s statements on “containment,” and the way Josep Borrell elaborated on them. How can containment promote closer ties? This creates an opposite result.

Before the 2014 events, we proceeded in our ties from our shared understanding of the fundamental objective we had. It was a question of doing away with the Cold War legacy and completing the effort to reunite the European continent by building a shared economic, cultural and humanitarian space from Lisbon to Vladivostok free of any dividing lines, a shared space of security, while preserving sovereignty and sovereign perspectives on matters of principle.

Russia was as serious about this as possible. We were committed to working together to build four common spaces and were discussing a new framework agreement. We offered to create a Russia-EU Council for Foreign Policy and Security, as well as mutually beneficial mechanisms for working together on crisis management. We worked hard to promote visa-free travel for our citizens. Today, there are quite a few voices in the EU who are not at all embarrassed to pretend that these projects were concessions they were offering Russia for “good behaviour.” However, on closer inspection, the EU also benefited from closer ties with Russia on an equal and mutually beneficial footing.

As for visa-free travel, the EU has used this as leverage in its relations with other countries. Comply with the rules they believe to be important, and get visa-free travel in return. Otherwise, do not expect visa procedures to become any easier.

Instead of building a Russia-EU strategic partnership of two interdependent global integration centres, as we have always wanted to proceed and to which we remain open, Brussels opted for extracting as many unilateral benefits as possible from the model of relations that we created. Later, they joined efforts to contain our country.

Russia will persist in its efforts to promote multifaceted cooperation in various spheres with countries which do not seek to politicise the bilateral agenda. Of course, politics inevitably affects bilateral relations. Still, you cannot use total submission to the political interests of another state as a precondition for closer ties in other areas. Relations must not become hostage to one’s own hypocritical approaches of dividing everyone into teachers and pupils. Unfortunately, Brussels has chosen this approach.

Question: The US Congressional Research Service has prepared a survey concerning the United Nations’ possible response to the special operation in Ukraine. It says that an increasing number of states can challenge Russia’s participation in the UN and its membership thereof. At the same time the CRS notes that US authorities play a definite policy-making role in the UN. Is this outcome likely and to what extent? How will Moscow retaliate if Russia is expelled from the UN?

Maria Zakharova: The idea of expelling Russia from the UN, despite the rapid buildup of rabid anti-Russia propaganda in the Western media, is still a fringe idea.

When we talk about the likelihood that “an increasing number of states” (as quoted by the media) could submit such a proposal, an important reservation is in order: Washington and the like-minded associates it has brought to heel – those who have supported sanctions against Russia – do not constitute even a simple majority at the UN General Assembly, let alone a qualifying majority of two-thirds. The other members of the international community are reaffirming their willingness to develop constructive and mutually beneficial relations with Russia regardless of the pressure and gross blackmail tactics of the collective West.

But if Washington continues to push its own agenda with blackmail and direct threats to the member countries, with personal threats to politicians, threats to the entire population of an individual country, you should ask: how can the UN live with this? Could it survive under these circumstances? After all, the UN is about aligning interests, maintaining balances, and searching for compromise. It was created for this. But if decisions are taken by a majority created by force, it is not about the UN, it is about NATO or some other organisations based on the principle “One man decides, and all others toe the line.” But this cannot describe the UN.

Whatever the case, a scenario involving the expulsion of Russia from UN membership is unfeasible by definition. In fact, Article 6 of the UN Charter provides for the possibility of a state being expelled from the UN by decision of the General Assembly. I have already commented on the likelihood of this outcome. Expelling anyone requires a recommendation from the UN Security Council, and it will not issue this recommendation because a relevant resolution requires not only nine aye votes but also the approval of the five permanent members with the right to veto, one of which is Russia.

Ukraine’s insinuations that Russia should not be a UN member began even before February 24, 2022. The Ukrainian regime was slaughtering civilians, but they were raising grievances against Russia.

Question: A humanitarian disaster broke out in Nagorno-Karabakh over a week ago after an explosion on the gas pipeline, the repair of which Azerbaijan is preventing. Gas distribution in the republic has been cut off, and there are big problems with electricity, while the weather is still cold. In addition, the Azerbaijani service members are regularly shooting at several Artsakh villages with light weapons and even mortars, demanding that residents leave their houses contrary to the trilateral agreement signed on November 9, 2020.

What is Russia’s view on Azerbaijan’s actions, and what is being done to ensure the security of people in Nagorno-Karabakh and to restore gas and electricity?

Maria Zakharova: We are concerned about the situation in that region and at some parts of the Azerbaijani-Armenian border. We have taken note of the ceasefire violations, which have become regular in March. The Russian peacekeeping unit is taking measures to maintain stability and monitor the situation in its zone of responsibility. Thanks to these efforts, no armed clashes have been reported there since March 13. As for the Azerbaijani-Armenian border, we are calling for the launch of the delimitation process as soon as possible and the establishment of a bilateral commission for this purpose.

We are aware of the humanitarian crisis created by the gas pipeline explosion. We are interacting with both Azerbaijan and Armenia to settle this problem.

We believe that it is vital to avoid any moves that could create problems for the local residents, for civilians, and that could further complicate the far from simple humanitarian situation there.

Question: Are there any thoughts in Moscow that Baku has decided to take advantage of the situation, that is, Russia’s special operation in Ukraine?

Maria Zakharova: We continue working in this sphere regardless of any other international or foreign policy developments. A settlement in the region you mentioned is one of our priorities. All the parties are aware of this.

Question: The Armenian Foreign Ministry has announced that, acting in reply to proposals from Azerbaijan, Yerevan has appealed to the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group to organise talks on a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan based on the UN Charter, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Helsinki Final Act. What is Moscow’s opinion of this proposal? What is the probability of signing a peace treaty soon?

Maria Zakharova: We welcome the willingness of Azerbaijan and Armenia to start working on a peace treaty. We reaffirm our resolve to provide general assistance in the negotiating process. However, it would be premature to speculate on the timeframe for ending the process and signing a peace treaty.

Question: What is Russia’s view of the five principles of a peace treaty with Armenia as proposed by Azerbaijan, namely, recognition of territorial integrity, renunciation of territorial claims, non-aggression, delimitation of the border, and access to communications?

Maria Zakharova: I have already answered this question. We welcome the parties’ willingness to work on this. We are ready to assist their efforts. The parties will decide all questions between themselves. We will give them all the necessary assistance. The issue must certainly be settled through negotiation.

Question: Taking advantage of the situation between Russia and Ukraine, India launched a missile in the direction of Pakistan. After two days of silence, India reported that it had been “by mistake.” Whether it was an intended strike or an accident, the launch of the missile caused serious concern in Pakistan. This incident must receive due assessment of the international community – especially now that the situation in the entire world is rather tense. What is Russia’s stance in the context of current developments in the world?

Maria Zakharova: We are monitoring this situation as well. We saw and noted the statement by the Indian Ministry of Defence saying that the launch of the missile was a technical failure. It is the country’s official stance.

We sincerely hope that this incident will not create complications in the relations between Pakistan and India.

Question: Today you mentioned the nationals of Pakistan who were evacuated from Mariupol. Do you know how many Pakistanis were evacuated?

Maria Zakharova: Two hundred and fifty people were evacuated in total, including nationals of Pakistan. I can find out how many and forward you the number.

We are maintaining close contact with Pakistani officials concerning this matter.

Question: Publicising documents and documentary evidence on the topical matter during these briefings is important. Please continue to do so. It is a strong move. In chess, it would get two exclamation points.

Maria Zakharova: We are not playing chess. Chess was left in the Cold War and the era before it.

What we have today is an unknown game that involves the violation of rules, rights, laws and norms. Chess has nothing to do with what the collective West is doing right now. They are playing a game without rules. It is not even a game but a disaster for them and their citizens.

You know very well what consequences these kind of reckless escapades can cause. These are not even escapades because “escapade” can mean “adventure” – something risky but possibly with a positive outcome (which could also be negative). This is not a game or an escapade. It is a destructive activity.

We will continue making public all facts. Do visit our social media accounts and the accounts of the Defence Ministry. I understand that our websites may be unavailable or blocked in many countries. In some areas, the Runet may be blocked altogether. But we try to publish our information across different platforms.

Question: The West has blocked practically all Russian media outlets on its territory and is disseminating lopsided information about the main events.

Under these circumstances, Russian compatriots’ mass and social media are the only source of credible information. The compatriots wield much influence based on established trustworthy contacts, command of the languages spoken in their countries of residence, and their ability to reach many categories of foreign nationals.

Given the current developments, have you envisaged any new fitting measures to support the Russian compatriots’ media?

Maria Zakharova: The seventh World Congress of Russian Compatriots has just been held, which discussed all matters of interest for compatriots. We will certainly analyse the newly developed forms of interaction.

I agree with you that amid a total information blockade of Russia, our compatriots, who know the situation from the inside rather than by hearsay, are stepping forward as ardent supporters due to their knowledge. They have come under powerful pressure. Even outstanding politicians, let alone ordinary people, are breaking down under the strain. They are being showered by threats and face blackmail and all sorts of harassment.

We will certainly think of how to take this work to a new level.

Question: The patriotic compatriots will be undaunted.

Maria Zakharova: Yes, I know this for certain. This is the moment of truth. It becomes clear where we have true patriotism and where it is time-serving. The true patriotism has become manifest now.

Question: Alarming reports are coming from the EU. After a “check on views” of the events in Ukraine in a school in the Czech Republic, a dozen Russian children and their parents received a stern warning: the views of your child do not coincide with the EU’s position and are allegedly based on Russian misinformation. If these views do not change, the authorities will turn to the juvenile enforcement department. As we know from our rich experience of dealing with a “democratic and free Europe,” this could lead to a tragedy — the forceful withdrawal of a child from his or her family.

Do you know of these facts, and is it possible to protect our compatriots’ children against this threat?

Maria Zakharova: Yes, we know about this. Currently, this is related to Ukraine and the situation there. We are collecting facts on the violations of the rights of our compatriots, both adults and children. You may rest assured that this is no secret for anyone.

Our compatriots have already conducted several public events on the protection of their rights. It is possible to defend them abroad, including at the legal level.

I’d like to recall the measures envisaged by the Federal Law, On Sanctions for Individuals Violating Fundamental Human Rights and Freedoms of the Citizens of the Russian Federation (also known as the Dima Yakovlev Law).

As part of our information support, we consider it important to familiarise our compatriots with materials and arguments based on the laws of the countries they live in, as regards observing the rights of ethnic minorities and preventing discrimination. Thus, work is also being done through human rights groups that our compatriots are part of and through Russian relevant organisations, including the Foundation for the Support and Protection of the Rights of Compatriots Living Abroad.

I would like to address our citizens, our compatriots that are now abroad. Practically every embassy or consulate has a 24-hour hotline. Please tell us about the violations of your rights, pressure, blackmail, threats or any form of discrimination. We will systematise these facts for our work with the local authorities and international organisations with a view to ending the harassment of Russians wherever it takes place.

Indeed, we interpret the word “Russian” differently. In the West, every citizen of our country is considered Russian. Our multiethnic country has people of different ethnic origins, but that doesn’t matter in this case. We understand the implication. Ethnic origin and even citizenship are irrelevant. It is position that matters. The bottom line is that everyone, a person of any ethnic origin with any passport, who knows or needs the truth, who wants to uphold it and does not break down, is now a Russian. This is an amazing historical phenomenon but it is a fact. It seems that the entire collective West is snarling and fighting to prevent the triumph of truth. It wants to impose its views and change the perspective. It wants to break people down by blackmail and pressure.

All of this did not start today. When it comes to influencing children, it did not start today. This concerns not only attitude to Russia but many other issues as well.

Somebody I know told me a story. A couple of years ago, their child wrote an essay in the United States on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He wrote that the United States used nuclear weapons to bomb Japanese cities with civilians and that it was unnecessary in terms of the strategy for ending World War II. The child’s parents were summoned to the school and asked where they had gotten this kind of “secret information,” as the teachers called it. It is already becoming a big secret in Japan, the United States and other countries that Washington was the first and, fortunately, the only country in the world to have used nuclear weapons against civilians when the strategic military situation did not call for it. This is how many other things people knew were forgotten and washed out of their memory. When children start sharing this knowledge in schools and writing research papers (term papers and theses), their parents are summoned to their schools.

This is true not only of historical facts but also regarding how children and their families approach basic principles. This happens when a child is forced to adopt and try out the concept of so-called gender diversity, when girls change into boys’ clothes and boys into girls’ clothes, use bathrooms (excuse me) for the opposite sex and turn to role models that are supposed to change the child’s mindset and make them think like the opposite sex. Parents who object to their child participating in these kinds of events and “educational projects,” are subject to enormous pressure and bullying. They become excluded from social life. That did not start yesterday. Today we are witnessing just one of its manifestations. The anger has spilled over and is spreading like pus from an infected wound. But this has been happening for many years.

I believe the truth will prevail.

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