Ukraine calls for boycott of Russian delegation led by sanctioned diplomat Matvienko in Geneva

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The Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian Parliament) has called on its partners to boycott events involving the Russian delegation led by Valentina Matviyenko at an international conference in Geneva. Matviyenko is the speaker of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation, which is subject to sanctions.

Source: European Pravda; Olena Kondratiuk, Verkhovna Rada Deputy Speaker, who will represent Ukraine

Details: Kondratiuk called on other parliament speakers attending the global conference in Geneva to avoid any interaction with Matviyenko, who was allowed to attend the conference in Geneva despite sanctions.

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The deputy speaker added that she was shocked by the presence of the Russian delegation led by Matviyenko.

Quote from Kondratiuk: “I call on the participants of the speakers’ conference to boycott any public events involving this international criminal, Matviyenko. Any joint photo or handshake with her means siding with the aggressor. And this will inevitably be used by Russian propaganda to justify the crimes of the Russian Federation… We cannot allow the shameful presence of criminals without any reaction. Persons who are under sanctions cannot fly freely to international gatherings! They cannot spread their narratives at the most representative venues. What then is the point of sanctions?”

More details: In referencing the conference, Kondratiuk noted that she plans to speak about what Ukraine is going through in regards to the war, remind people about the children abducted by Russia, and also call for tougher sanctions.

Background:

• Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhii said that Matvienko’s place is “in the dock, not at international conferences”, and that her admission to Geneva “is shameful and should not have happened”.
• The World Conference of Speakers of Parliament meets once every five years. This is the first such event since the start of the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
• Previously, North Macedonia and Malta, which chaired the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), allowed a Russian delegation led by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to participate in a ministerial meeting, despite the war and sanctions.

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