Briefing by Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, September 5, 2023

I want to remind you that our briefings are open to all Russian and foreign journalists. We often receive questions about it, and even see that the Western media claim that Russia is making the work of foreign journalists difficult, does not provide information, etc. For everyone to understand, I reiterate that absolutely any foreign correspondent who has a journalist ID can join our briefing online by filling out the accreditation form that we regularly link to the Foreign Ministry website, prior to the briefing.

Sergey Lavrov’s participation in 18th East Asia Summit

On September 7, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will take part in the 18th East Asia Summit (EAS) in Jakarta.

We consider this platform, which is part of the system of mechanisms of our strategic partner, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, an important architectural element of regional security with the potential to promote multifaceted practical interaction.

During the event, we believe it is important to discuss the challenges currently faced by the Asia-Pacific region. In particular, we are going to draw attention to the risks of an escalation of the military-political situation in the Asia-Pacific region against the backdrop of the West’s attempts to expand the geographical area of “NATO responsibility” and its desire to open the “NATO umbrella” over this region as well. The difference between the NATO umbrella and a regular umbrella is obvious: the regular one provides protection from rain. When the NATO umbrella opens, it causes rain over the one who opened it. And not as a pleasant natural phenomenon – usually it rains blood. In addition, a detailed conversation is due about preserving the sustainability of the ASEAN-centric architecture, which is now facing serious pressure from alternative bloc platforms.

Russia advocates the expansion of broad comprehensive practical cooperation within the EAS. This approach – free of political factors – lies at the foundation of all Russian proposals. We advocate continuing the work to launch a region-wide mechanism of collective response to epidemics, developing cooperation in tourism and interaction between volunteer movements.

During his trip to Jakarta, Sergey Lavrov will hold a series of meetings with regional partners and representatives of multilateral associations.

Sergey Lavrov’s upcoming visit to Bangladesh

On September 7-8, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will pay a working visit to the People’s Republic of Bangladesh. The Russian Foreign Minister’s programme includes a meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, as well as talks with Foreign Minister A. K. Abdul Momen.

During the upcoming visit, the current state and prospects for the further development of Russian-Bangladeshi relations will be examined in detail. The parties will also exchange views on the most pressing regional and international problems.

Sergey Lavrov’s participation in the upcoming G20 Summit

As we reported at the previous briefing, on September 9-10, 2023, the G20 Summit will be held in New Delhi, India. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will lead the Russian delegation to the meeting.

Mr Lavrov is expected to speak at two plenary sessions: on September 9, at the One Planet session, focused on sustainable development and stable economic growth; and on September 10, at the One Future session, with an emphasis on the key tasks of democratisation and strengthening the role of the world majority countries in global economic institutions, as well as implementation of the digital transformation.

As part of a tour of countries in the region, bilateral meetings are scheduled on the sidelines of international forums. We will provide additional information on this matter. The data will be published on the Foreign Ministry’s website and social media pages.

The upcoming 8th Eastern Economic Forum

The 8th Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) will take place in Vladivostok on September 10-13. This forum was established by President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin with the goal of promoting the development of the economy in the Russian Far East and expanding international cooperation in the Asia-Pacific Region (APR).

The forum has firmly established itself as a leading platform for dialogue on pressing socioeconomic issues in the APR. Our partners are genuinely interested in deepening practical cooperation with our country. For instance, over 7,000 representatives from official, expert, and business circles of 68 APR countries and other regions of the world participated in the EEF 2022, among them, about 1,700 business people representing 700 companies. As a result, nearly 300 agreements and memoranda of understanding were signed, involving projects in infrastructure, transport, mineral resource development, construction, industry, and agriculture.

The 8th EEF is expected to bring together approximately 20,000 participants from Russia and abroad. The programme includes plenary and theme-based sessions and exhibitions, as well as cultural and humanitarian activities.

The agenda will cover international cooperation in a changing world, issues related to the current state of the global economy, the formation of new supply chains, the development of the Russian Far East and its role in the region.

A separate major section will focus on discussing current technological and climate changes.

We anticipate engaging discussions with the participation of our regional partners about countering infectious diseases and strengthening biological security in general.

Traditionally, a great deal of attention is paid to the work of regional multilateral associations on the sidelines of EEF, including the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), and Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD). There is a visible interest among forum participants in the prospects of the BRICS process.

Business dialogues are being prepared to discuss trade and economic relations between Russia and China, India, ASEAN, Laos, and Mongolia.

EEF continues to provide a venue for annual APEC conferences on higher education cooperation. This year's 12th conference will focus on issues related to innovative high technology and artificial intelligence.

I would like to draw your attention to the fact that a panel hosted by the Foreign Ministry and the International Life journal will take place at 12:30 on September 13 as part of the forum’s business programme. The panel topic is Global Alternatives to Western Dominance: Outline of the Future. There will be an engaging discussion with the participation of officials from the executive and legislative branches, as well as the scientific and expert community. I’m sure you will be impressed by the participants and the emotional intensity of the event.

During the panel, it is planned to discuss the current state of international relations, the process of shaping a multipolar order, the pressing challenges facing our country and its partners, and ways to overcome the challenges that have been created by the egocentric collective West.

The next briefing will take place on the sidelines of the EEF.

Ukraine crisis update

Tonight, the Kiev regime tried to attack targets in a number of Russian regions using drones. Ukrainian UAVs were shot down in the Moscow, Kaluga and Tver regions. According to preliminary reports, the attacks did not result in casualties. Nevertheless, the Ukrainian UAV raids on peaceful civilian sites once again confirm the terrorist nature of the Kiev regime. There is no way one can remain blind to this, even in the most remote corners of our planet.

Kiev neo-Nazis continue to perpetuate crimes against the civilian population in the Russian regions. To do so, they are now making full use of the weapons supplied to them by Westerners, including heavy artillery, MLRS and assault drones, depleted uranium shells, etc.

On September 1, which in Russia is Knowledge Day – a children's holiday that celebrates future generations – the Kiev regime and its armed squads shelled Donetsk. A six-year-old girl was killed and more than 10 people were injured. Have you seen many articles or mentions in the Western press? None. Why? Because the victims were people of a different kind and children of a different nationality, not the one the West sees as worthy of sympathy and support. On August 31, a Ukrainian hit squad attempted to infiltrate the Bryansk Region. Thanks to the prompt and professional action taken by the Russian security forces, the attempt was foiled.

The Kiev regime has stepped up the use of terrorist methods with regard to Crimea. On September 1 and 2 (the choice of the date was clearly intentional – Knowledge Day, the day seven-year-olds start school and pupils attend back-to-school parades), Ukrainian forces again tried, unsuccessfully, to attack the Crimean bridge with maritime drones. In addition to the shelling, the West and its underlings in Kiev are also ramping up their rhetoric, which suggests that the NATO countries have not abandoned their intention to deliver what they would see as a truly painful blow to Crimea using their Ukrainian henchmen. They just can’t get over Crimea living in peace. What people in this Russian region think about it is the last thing they care about. They have chosen not just the path of force, but the path of war. On August 31, former commanding general of United States Army Europe, General Ben Hodges, in an interview with Newsweek, called for the destruction of the Crimean bridge to isolate the peninsula.

Can such people be called political or public figures, or even people at all? What kind of perverse thinking is that? No, people don’t talk like that. Especially after they have been talking for decades about human rights, humanistic values, and freedoms. No, they wouldn't talk like that. So there was a part that wasn't true. I even know which part. I think everyone knows that by now. They swore that they were committed to freedom, to human rights, that all those things were a real value to them – but they were never a value to them. Now all that “plaster” has crumbled away. We have seen their true colors.

During the Ambrosetti International Economic Forum in Italy, Vladimir Zelensky said he favoured Russian troops leaving Crimea without pressure from the Ukrainian Armed Forces. He also mentioned that retaking Crimea and Donbass are the Kiev regime’s top priorities. He appears to disregard the fact that these regions are not just geographical areas; they are home to people that have their own opinions.

Additionally, Zelensky said last Sunday he would appoint Rustem Umerov the Defence Minister of Ukraine to replace Alexey Reznikov. It is hard to understand the exact reasons for Reznikov's dismissal. Is it due to a corruption scandal or are there other reasons? If it’s related to corruption, there must be criminal proceedings in place. Here’s what I think. There’s much ado about it, but clearly it all comes down to a publicity stunt staged by Kiev. Let's return to Umerov, though. Who is he? He received his education in the United States, the “citadel of human rights.” He also gained notoriety for his inhumane treatment of Crimea residents, even though he seemed to have always championed their interests. You may remember how at one point he supported the maritime blockade of Crimea.

Regardless of the crimes committed by Ukrainian neo-Nazis, we will not just list them but will also describe the punishments they receive. All their crimes are thoroughly documented by Russian law enforcement agencies. I emphasise that they are not only documented but also investigated, and charges are being brought against the perpetrators.

Based on the evidence gathered by the Investigative Committee of Russia, the Russian courts are sentencing Ukrainian militants, including those who have committed serious crimes against civilians. A Ukrainian serviceman, M. Ovcharenko, was sentenced to 22 years in a maximum security correctional facility for shooting a civilian in Mariupol in April 2022, along with two other Ukrainian soldiers, on the orders of a Ukrainian Armed Forces commander. Ukrainian neo-Nazi D. Zaets was sentenced to 15 years in a maximum security correctional facility for firing an anti-tank grenade launcher at a residential building in Severodonetsk in May 2022. Nationalist V. Prokopchuk, who fatally shot a civilian with a submachine gun in the spring of 2022, was sentenced to 25 years in a maximum security correctional facility.

Efforts to identify and punish Ukrainian gunmen who commit crimes against civilians will continue. All criminals will be identified and brought to justice.

In this context, NATO countries, as indifferent as they are to the crimes committed by their Kiev underlings, continue to provide military assistance to the regime. The 45th package of weapons from the United States worth $250 million is expected to arrive soon. It will include ammunition for air defence and artillery. Reportedly, the first 10 US-made main battle Abrams tanks will arrive in Ukraine in mid-September. They may be equipped with depleted uranium shells. As a reminder, the West is waging war until the last Ukrainian, but not in the format of today, but for the future. Meanwhile, the first 200 Ukrainian military personnel have undergone training in operating this armoured equipment at Germany's training grounds. In all, by the end of the year, EU countries plan to train 40,000 Ukrainian soldiers. Thus, NATO member states continue to escalate the situation in Ukraine. Their responsibility for continuing the conflict and for the loss of life is becoming increasingly evident and severe.

In turn, in an effort to please its Western masters and to create a sense of activity amidst the failed counteroffensive, the Kiev regime is throwing an increasing number of its own citizens in the meat grinder of this failed operation. These Ukrainians will now be tracked down around the world. The other day, the leader of the Servant of the People Party parliamentary group in the Verkhovna Rada, the notorious “ancient Ukr” David Arakhamiya, said the Ukrainian authorities may seek the extradition of conscripts who left the country with fake health certificates to avoid military service. We are already aware that everyone, including people with disabilities, is being called up in Ukraine. Now, the Kiev regime’s bloody hand will reach out to those who managed to escape it. Clearly, for Westerners, Ukrainians are second-class people, whom the NATO countries use only for their own benefit to sow chaos in the region. In general, the alliance has long ceased to hide its Nazi streak. In addition to this, as reported, Kiev now plans to draft citizens who are partially fit for military service. This is something we have mentioned on many occasions.

The member states of the alliance have nurtured Ukrainian neo-Nazism and cultivated hatred towards Russia for many years now. As a result, neo-Nazism is rampant in Ukraine. It is now directed not only against Russia, Russians, or Hungarians whom they have been cultivating hatred towards for a long time now. Aggressive nationalism and chauvinism tends to eventually disassociate itself from specific goals or objectives. It is just hatred for its own sake. It is unadulterated and absolute evil. The Kiev authorities are used as a cover to celebrate Nazi “chants.” They are passed on to the younger generation of that country. False values are being imposed, and a distorted understanding of what is good and what is evil is instilled. For example (these examples abound), on September 1, a song about killing Moskali (a derogatory term for Russians) could be heard in a Ukrainian school. It has been clear for a long time now that the Kiev regime harbours hatred towards children. However, many believed that it was about Russians, Russian-speaking children, or children of other ethnicities residing in certain territories. But they hate their own children as well. Only a deep-seated hatred for their children can lead to such bitter anger. All of this clearly indicates that this policy has been pursued for a long time, systematically and purposefully. This aligns with the West's policy of turning Ukrainian children into mindless zombies, who will be expended to the last one, just as is now happening with their parents.

Meanwhile, rebuilding housing and infrastructure, including schools, continues at a fast pace in the Donetsk People's Republic and Lugansk People's Republic, as well as in the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions. For example, in Mariupol, thanks to round-the-clock efforts by builders, the Azov State Technical University and the Mariupol A.I. Kuindzhi State University have been rebuilt, and School No. 15 has been repaired in less than a year. In the Volnovakha District, builders from the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Area have reconstructed five more schools just in time for the Knowledge Day. In all, over 1,250 schools have opened in these regions since September 1.

I would like to remind you that five years ago, on August 31, 2018, the head of the Donetsk People's Republic, Alexander Zakharchenko, tragically died in a terrorist attack staged by the criminal Kiev regime. In 2014, he was one of those who refused to tolerate the Nazi nature of the new Ukrainian government and the infringement on the rights of Donbass residents. He refused to accept the rewriting of history, the denigration of the memory of his ancestors, and the formation of “mankurts” (a term referring to people who have lost their national identity) on his native land. Zakharchenko remains a hero for us, someone who, without sparing himself, defended his native land from the Nazi threat.

No matter how hard the Kiev regime may try, no matter how hard it tries to poison the people of Ukraine with primitive hatred and Russophobia, its attempts are doomed. Let me provide some statistics. According to facts and figures, since February 2022, over 5 million people have come to our country from Ukraine. In the face of that fact, the myths about Russophobia supposedly running in the blood of Ukrainians or residents of Ukraine, whether Russian-speaking or oriented elsewhere, fall apart. Five million people have come to our country from Ukraine. Now run the numbers to see what percentage that is of Ukraine's total population. Reasonable people who did not want to have anything to do with Kiev's neo-Nazis, understand perfectly well that in Russia they can build a future for themselves and their children without being targeted for more psychological, gender-based or political experiments. Moreover, they realise that they have left Ukraine not because they don't love that land, but because the bloody experiment conducted by the West with the Kiev regime has not yet come to an end.

The use of Western weapons in Ukraine for attacking civilian facilities

Today we will do what we only do very seldom. We will not only provide facts, figures and other data; we will show you pictures.

We repeatedly spoke about the use of NATO weapons by Ukrainian forces, including cluster munitions, to attack civilian facilities in the zone of the special military operation. Civilians, who are our compatriots, including children and senior citizens, have been killed in such attacks by Ml42 HIMARS multiple launch systems, М-31 guided missiles, the Anglo-French cruise missiles Storm Shadow, and the М-777 and Archer howitzers.

I often talk about this, but today I will show you several fragments of NATO munitions we have received from the Defence Ministry of Russia. We will also post their photographs on the ministry’s accounts in the social media.

These horrible “postcards” are designed for those in the EU and NATO countries who believe that their taxes and free donations serve the cause of peace. Look at them. There’s children’s blood on them, the blood of innocent civilians. These munitions were bought, produced and transported with the money of people in the EU countries who talk about peace every day and believe that this is important. Is the EU paying for this kind of peace? Is this the peace that EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell regards as ideal? Is this the peace the Western NGOs and media organisations are talking about? Look at these shell fragments carefully.

We would like to point out that the NATO countries’ authorities are direct accomplices in the Kiev regime’s bloody crimes against civilians. I am often asked during interviews and conversations with Western journalists if we consider, or when we will consider the involvement of NATO as a bloc or its individual members in the Ukraine war as a proven fact. This is ridiculous. Who is supplying the weapons, money and material support? NATO is. They often argue that this is not direct involvement. Does it matter if it is direct or indirect? Yes, it is distorted involvement, just like a distorting mirror that reflects the Western values and human rights declarations. And the Western involvement in Ukraine’s future is distorted as well. The “new” Ukrainian state, as the West put it, was built on a distorted foundation too. All of us know how dangerous a distorted foundation can be. And now that “building” has collapsed.

The Ukrainian army coordinates the targets for the Western-made missiles with the representatives of NATO countries, which also provide the coordinates to the Kiev regime. Doesn’t this mean that NATO is involved in the hostilities? The targeting of the Storm Shadow missiles, whose fragments I showed you just now, is based on satellite navigation and electronic maps, and their flight path takes into account the local terrain and large objects such as bridges. But although NATO publicly says that it supplies the most modern systems to Ukraine, these weapons continue to hit civilian facilities, literally bringing death to children, as it happened on June 9, 2023, when Storm Shadow missiles landed in a children’s camp in the Kherson Region. Have you seen an exhibition, exposition or individual photographs of that atrocity in the NATO headquarters? No? Maybe you saw them on the NATO accounts in social media? You mean they haven’t demonstrated the results of their effective strikes at children’s summer camps? What stops them? The alliance knows very well that such attacks do nothing to affect the course of the war, and that the only goal of these terrorist attacks by the Kiev regime is to put psychological pressure on people in the liberated territories, who see their future in Russia. I would like to emphasise that the developments of the past decade were provoked by the West, which is why people have made their choice.

At the same time, NATO countries don’t care about the people who are suffering from Ukrainian shelling attacks every day. NATO continues to swamp the criminal neo-Nazi regime with weapons so as to “cause maximum damage to Russia and its people.” Ex-Defence Minister of Ukraine Alexey Reznikov has admitted that NATO’s assistance to Ukraine since February 2022 has exceeded $100 billion. Despite the failure of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, the collective West continues to invest in escalation, holding hostage the people they claimed to be concerned about for the past decade.

I would like to say again that the Russia law enforcement authorities are carefully recording every crime committed by the Kiev regime. The guilty parties will be identified and called to account in accordance with the law.

Plans by Germany’s Rheinmetall and a Swedish subsidiary of the UK’s BAE Systems to produce and service military equipment in Ukraine

We took notice of plans announced by a number of European arms producers, specifically Rheinmetall, Germany, and a Swedish subsidiary of BAE Systems, UK, to launch the production, maintenance and servicing of military equipment for the Armed Forces of Ukraine in Ukrainian territory.

We regard these intentions as yet another confirmation that the military-industrial complexes and the ruling elites of Western countries are directly involved in the armed conflict [in Ukraine] and support the criminal Kiev regime. The Western military-industrial complexes’ cynical desire to derive profit from the existing situation will only lead to a further escalation in Ukraine.

I want to address Western NGOs, all environmental funds that are constantly involved in politics, as well as multiple public organisations and human rights groups. Tell me, is it only whales that you feel any pity for? Or for tigers, fishes, and birds? Here, people are dying – they have been for years, by the way! Don’t you want to think about it, being non-governmental organisations and public activists? I also feel pity for animals. I know how they suffer because of [our] heartless attitude to environment. But for some reason, we are thinking about children at the Alley of Angels [in Donetsk], who can’t say a word for themselves, and the children that are now being killed by weapons supplied by your governments.

We came through all of this in the 1990s and 2000s: Beslan, a school seized by a group of international terrorists; Dubrovka in Moscow, a theatre performance for children, to which kids came with their parents; Budyonovsk, pregnant women at a maternity hospital taken hostage by terrorists… Children everywhere… And the West – Washington, London, Brussels, Paris, and Berlin – was giving moral and political support to the “freedom fighters,” who turned out to be blood-stained international terrorists. Have you forgotten how the West was applauding those international terrorists? Have you forgotten that they even laid the blame for those murderous terrorist attacks on Russia? They managed to see Moscow’s fault even in those attacks committed by international terrorists. Today, they prefer to cast a veil over these absolutely shameful episodes of their own history as if they had never happened. The stars of Western journalism, who ran live reports and interviewed international terrorists in the North Caucasus, now look ashamed and for some reason avoid releasing archive footage or review films, let alone praising their contemporary feats. Time has put everything in its proper place. True, there were many victims, but the truth is out. What other proof do you need today to see the horror being perpetrated by the Kiev regime and the entire NATO cesspit? Do you want a greater loss of life, or a vaster contaminated area? It will be the same as before. We will survive. We will save people you have been murdering for ten years. This Western “pouncing” and attempts to use their massive material aid to ideologically obscure what is clear to the majority of people in the world will lead to nothing but yet another Western disgrace.

If they start implementing what they have announced, Russia will take the necessary measures to cut short any threats to its security.

Russia’s embassies in Berlin and Stockholm have made relevant representations to the foreign ministries of Germany and Sweden. We proceed from the premise that both capitals will draw the necessary conclusions.

I want to ask public organisations in these two countries: Do you really see nothing or do you not want to see anything?

US State Department Global Engagement Centre’s new bulletin, The Kremlin's War Against Ukraine’s Children

On August 24, the Global Engagement Centre at the US Department of State published a bulletin, The Kremlin’s War Against Ukraine’s Children, which contains a streak of absurd accusations against Russia relating to the issue of children. The wording used includes terms such as “forcibly deported,” “filtration,” “re-education” and the like.

This is not just a piece of rampant misinformation distorting facts; it is in fact a terrible Goebbels-style fake narrative. They churn out such stories literally every day, distributing them to NGOs and international organisations to reinforce their arguments (for example, regarding the supply to Ukraine of the very weapons that we demonstrated during this briefing) to justify their support for the Kiev regime, to whitewash what Vladimir Zelensky is doing, the blood on his hands. Having no real evidence of the Russian soldiers’ “atrocities,” amid flagrant violations of international humanitarian law by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Western and Kiev propagandists plant such low, terrible, horrific materials, openly lying and presenting them as “factual” evidence.

Now let's talk about our approaches, as they say in the West, to the children's agenda.

Russia has never hidden what it has been doing in the interests of Ukrainian children who ended up in our territory. On behalf of President Vladimir Putin, most of the work in this area is being carried out by Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova-Belova, who regularly reports to the public, including the international community, on the situation regarding children evacuated from the war zone, and the steps taken by Russian agencies to reunite underage citizens of Ukraine with their families. She cites relevant facts and figures. Russia is cooperating with the International Committee of the Red Cross, and has established contacts with the Ukrainian side. All this information is in the public domain. But the US State Department will never publish any of that. Instead of using available facts for their “reports,” they prefer stories based on morbid fantasies.

Anniversary of a terrorist attack near Russian Embassy in Kabul

Today, September 5, marks the first anniversary of a sad event: a terrorist attack near the Russian Embassy in Kabul that killed two members of the Russian diplomatic mission. The fond memory of them will remain forever in our hearts.

Unfortunately, the issue of fighting international terrorist groups on the territory of Afghanistan remains acute. The Afghan government’s efforts are obviously not enough to completely eliminate the underground terrorist movement and to ensure national security.

We are convinced that consolidated regional efforts to facilitate a peace settlement in Afghanistan will finally make it possible to guarantee peace and stability in Afghanistan, to eradicate hotbeds of terrorism and prevent terrorism from spreading to neighbouring states in the region.

An attack on the Acting Russian Consul General in Gothenburg

On September 1, 2023, an outrageous incident took place in Gothenburg prior to the closure of the Russian Consulate General in this Swedish city.

I would like to remind you that Russia decided to shut down its consular mission in response to Sweden’s confrontationist policy which virtually paralysed the work of the Consulate General. This included endless anti-Russia rallies and manifestations in direct proximity to the mission, as well as provocations against the Consulate General and its staff. In turn, we demanded that Sweden close its Consulate General in St Petersburg.

The Acting Consul General was attacked in the evening of August 31, 2023 during a rally staged by supporters of the Kiev regime. The protesters used physical force against the Russian official and yelled slurs and insults regarding his citizenship, professional and ethnic affiliation. They also tried to enter the territory of the consular mission, which was still working at the time.

We believe the incident was caused, among other things, by the fact that members of Swedish law enforcement agencies who were stationed near the Consulate General for the duration of the anti-Russia rally left the scene before all rally participants had dispersed. We would now like to ask Stockholm whether they were ordered to leave the scene while the pro-Kiev rally was still underway. Perhaps they were directly ordered to close their eyes to the subsequent developments?

Swedish authorities must fully comply with their obligations under the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, as regards ensuring the immunity of Russian missions and their personnel.

We have another question for Stockholm: do similar incidents targeting Swedish diplomats happen anywhere else in the world? We just want Stockholm to understand that this issue must not be treated irresponsibly. This is exactly why the agreements signed over 50 years ago state expressly that each country receiving diplomats, consular officers and the diplomatic missions has an obligation to protect them.

Council of Europe’s anti-Russia position regarding the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris

We watch with regret the continuing erosion of a fundamental principle of the international sports movement, that “sport is beyond politics.” It is not a simple slogan or a formula. It is a provision of international law. We can see that more attempts are being made to use major international competitions and sports as a means of political pressure. The fight against alleged human rights violations, corruption and doping is being used for political purposes in individual organisations where a group of unfriendly countries, the US-led collective West, sets the tone.

The Council of Europe has not remained aloof of the sports issue. It is waging a campaign to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes from the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The CoE Secretariat has spoken up in support of the politicised PACE resolution adopted on June 22, 2923, which we covered at the June 28 briefing.

In this context, we have taken note of a statement by the Council of Europe’s Deputy Secretary General Bjorn Berge (Norway) posted on the CoE website. He said that he “finds it extremely hard to accept” that Russian and Belarusian athletes should be able to compete in the upcoming competitions. He seems to have forgotten that the final declaration of the 15th Conference of Ministers responsible for Sport, held in Tbilisi on October 16, 2018, stated that “sport is a fundamental right for all.” Something doesn’t add up here. The Council of Europe upholds human rights. What about the right to engage in sport? Or can only people of certain nationalities enjoy this right? But there are CoE resolutions on nationality as well, not to mention the universal and integral right of people to engage in cultural activities, including sport, which all state and private organisations must respect without any discrimination. Has Strasbourg forgotten its own decisions? Anything can happen, but if this is so, they should admit this publicly. They could hold a news conference or a briefing to explain their position on the fundamental principles they have confirmed and reconfirmed many times. There is a direct contradiction.

We would like to remind CoE officials that any form of discrimination against athletes in team or individual sports, including for political reasons, is not acceptable (Clause 6 of the Fundamental Principles of Olympism). You can read these principles. Unlike the order based on unwritten “rules,” these principles have been committed to paper.

We are surprised, to put it mildly, by the position of the Council of Europe’s Deputy Secretary General. It is yet another instance of the use of double standards, which means no standards, regarding our athletes and a desire by the collective West to cancel the principle of autonomy of the sports movement for mercenary considerations. I would like to remind you that the Strasbourg officials, who claim to be concerned about the “integrity of international sports,” have not even considered any bans for athletes from NATO countries during the conflicts initiated by the alliance.

I have a question for Strasbourg: How long will these restrictions be in effect? Or there is no time limit? In that case, I suggest that they review the list of countries that attacked Yugoslavia, bombed Belgrade and killed civilians. Athletes from those countries must be banned. Why look at other countries when you can start with yourself? Or take the anti-Iraq coalition. I’d like to remind you that apart from bombing Iraq, overthrowing its legitimate government and executing Iraqi leaders, they divided the country into occupation zones. Each member of the anti-Iraq coalition was responsible for a certain city or region. Maybe Strasbourg will ban athletes from those countries? Or is that “different”?

It is especially outrageous that the concerned CoE bodies have not reacted to the Ukrainian athletes’ attempts to use international competitions for spreading nationalist propaganda and other obvious violations of the “sports is beyond politics” principle.

Trouble will come to those who are destroying the international Olympic movement from an unexpected direction. I think that, unfortunately, all those gender experiments will be the final nail in its coffin. That will certainly come to a bad end.

North Caucasus Federal University’s advanced training courses for healthcare workers of the Republic of the Congo in Brazzaville

From August 7-12 in Brazzaville, with the support of the Russian Embassy and the office of the Federal Agency for the Commonwealth of Independent States Affairs, Compatriots Living Abroad, and International Humanitarian Cooperation, specialists from the North Caucasus Federal University conducted advanced training courses for healthcare professionals from the Republic of the Congo in inpatient emergency care, traumatology and orthopaedics, and medical imaging.

In his speech at the opening ceremony, Minister of Health and Population of the Republic of the Congo Gilbert Mokoki noted the historic contribution of the USSR to the establishment of the Congolese healthcare system and spoke highly of the level of Russian-Congolese cooperation achieved in this area.

Over the course of six days, Russian experts conducted about 20 lectures, practical classes and roundtables for more than 100 Congolese doctors. At the end of the course, the trainees received advanced training certificates.

The project evoked a broad positive response from Congolese specialists, who emphasised the high practical significance of the knowledge acquired during the courses. The leadership of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of the Congo thanked Russia for organising the educational mission and expressed its interest in holding it on a regular basis.

Presentation of the Clobal Dance Overture international project by the Kostroma Ballet

On September 4, the Russian Song Moscow State Academic Theatre with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation presented its international project, the Global Dance Overture and the cultural and educational youth track International Creative DACHA for heads of the foreign diplomatic corps in Moscow.

The new projects were a continuation of international initiatives by the Russian National Dance Show Kostroma, which has earned worldwide recognition as one of the visiting cards of the rich Russian dance culture.

The Global Dance Overture initiative is supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation and provides for the organisation of tours of the outstanding Kostroma group to the BRICS member countries and other friendly states, exchange of experience with local dance artists, creation of common stage compositions in order to introduce each other's cultures to a wide audience around the world.

The educational part of the project, International Creative DACHA, organised with the support of the Administration of the Kostroma Region, will be implemented on the basis of the private professional educational institution The Governorate Ballet School in Kostroma for international students and dance students from BRICS and other countries.

For our part, we are sure that the implementation of the planned global project will allow us once again, as it already happened many times in our history, starting with the famous Sergey Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, to demonstrate to the whole world all the bright colours of Russian dance, deeply touching folk musical compositions and songs performed by their authors, and, of course, the high professionalism of the Russian ballet school.

Russian participation in the WorldFood Istanbul 2023 exhibition

WorldFood Istanbul 2023, the 31st International Exhibition of Food Products and Processing Technologies, will be held in Istanbul from September 6 to 9. Russian companies will be presented at the national Made in Russia display, organised by the Russian Export Centre.

The Russian national exposition will occupy more than 600 square metres of exhibition space. In total, more than 30 Russian producers will take part in the Made in Russia display. They will present canned, dairy and oil and fat products, ready-to-eat foodstuffs, as well as grain and leguminous products. Visitors will be able to discover natural health products made from ecologically pure raw materials grown in the unique climate of Altai and Eastern Siberia: herbal collections, flavoured teas, dry drink concentrates.

The international exhibition of food products and processing technologies World Food Istanbul is an effective tool for promoting products from Russia and attracting new customers through direct contact with representatives of retail chains and wholesale companies interested in cooperation with Russian producers.

This is only an announcement. The exhibition is scheduled to open tomorrow. We will be sure to post more information in the Russian Foreign Ministry accounts.

19th Kazan International Muslim Film Festival

The 19th Kazan International Muslim Film Festival will be held under the motto Through the Dialogue of Cultures to the Culture of Dialogue on September 5-9. It has been held in the capital of Tatarstan since 2005.

The best films of national and world cinematography calling for good, peace and justice regardless of the author's religion and promoting universal spiritual, moral and cultural values are selected for the programme. The festival contributes to the expansion of cultural and humanitarian cooperation, strengthening of trust and mutual understanding between peoples and unbiased representation of Islam and Muslims in the Russian and world community.

Thanks to the festival, Russian viewers were provided with their first opportunity to view films made by filmmakers from Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and other countries.

The selection committee and jury are made up of prominent artists – film directors, cameramen, and film historians from all over the world.

Independence Day in the Kingdom of Eswatini

The Kingdom of Eswatini celebrates its national holiday, Independence Day, on September 6. On this day in 1968, the Kingdom gained national sovereignty by leaving the protectorate of Great Britain.

We value the traditionally friendly nature of Russian-Eswatini relations. Regular political dialogue is maintained between Moscow and Mbabane, inter-parliamentary ties are strengthened, interaction is carried out on international platforms, primarily in the United Nations, and work is underway to develop cooperation in the economic and humanitarian spheres.

We congratulate our Eswatini friends on this holiday and sincerely wish them wellbeing, prosperity and progress.

15th anniversary of diplomatic relations with Abkhazia and South Ossetia

September 9 marks the 15th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Abkhazia and the Republic of South Ossetia.

This event, following the historic decision of the President of Russia to recognise Abkhazia and South Ossetia on August 26, 2008, opened broad opportunities for the development of allied relations with Sukhum and Tskhinval. Since then, practical co-operation in all areas has been considerably advanced. The Russian Federation has formed a common defence and security space with each of the republics. Trade, economic and investment cooperation continues to grow, and large-scale projects are being implemented in the socio-economic and cultural and humanitarian spheres. The international legal foundation for these relations is expanding; there are now some 250 documents of various levels. Extensive work is being carried out to ensure peace and stability in the region, to improve the living standards of the Abkhazia and South Ossetia people, and to strengthen the international standing of the young Transcaucasian states.

The political dialogue is developing intensively. On March 16, President Putin met with President of South Ossetia Alan Gagloev, and held a telephone conversation with President of Abkhazia Aslan Bzhania on July 1. On August 25 Aslan Bzhania and Alan Gagloev were received by Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev. On August 26, a representative Russian delegation took part in solemn events in Sukhum and Tskhinval marking the 15th anniversary of Russia’s recognition of the republics. The legislative authorities, regions and civil society actively maintain contacts with each other.

Russia intends to fully strengthen close allied relations with Abkhazia and South Ossetia on the basis of a shared history and common cultural and moral values.

30th anniversary of Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University

This week, Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its founding.

On September 9, 1993, in Bishkek, the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic signed an Agreement on the Conditions of the Establishment and Operation of Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University in Bishkek, which was the first interstate agreement of this kind in the modern history of Russia on the establishing a Slavic university under joint jurisdiction.

Since then, Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University has established itself as one of the leading universities in the education space of Central Asia, which aims to educate high-quality professionals in a wide range of fields, as well as to resolve socially significant problems in the region.

Amid global challenges, the university continues to effectively implement the tasks of technological and socio-economic development of the Russian Federation and the Kyrgyz Republic, relying on the best practices and achievements of our countries in science and education.

Today, Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University has about 8,000 students, and 24 majors are offered at the university. It administers seven faculties with 92 departments, employing more than 800 teachers.

The University Development Programme until 2025 provides for systematic measures to further improve the university system and support for talented young people.

Day of Remembrance for Victims of Fascism

Since 1962, the Day of Remembrance for Victims of Fascism has been observed around the world on the second Sunday of September following the decision of the UN General Assembly. This year, it will be on September 10 – make sure to mark this date in your calendars. This day was chosen for a reason. In fact, it was in September that two main dates in the history of World War II took place: the war started on September 1, 1939, and ended on September 3, 1945.

On this day, the world pays tribute to the memory of fighters who sacrificed their lives for the sake of liberating the world from the so-called brown plague, as well as those who worked behind the lines and died in the fight against Nazism. We also remember millions of people, including children, who died in concentration camps and ghettos created and operated by the Nazis and their collaborators. This is a special day for Russia as the successor state of the USSR, which lost tens of millions of people in that war.

This is why the International Union of Former Minor Prisoners of Fascism, together with the Russian Union of Former Minor Prisoners of Fascism and other patriotic Russian NGOs have been holding the annual International Anti-Fascist Forum since 2020, the year of the 75th anniversary of the Great Victory, to mark the Day of Remembrance for Victims of Fascism. This year, the forum will take place on September 12 and 13.

The participants will lay wreaths and flowers to the Tragedy of Nations memorial at Poklonnaya Gora. Speakers at the forum will include heads of veterans’ and youth organisations, officials representing federal executive bodies, the corresponding committees of the State Duma and the Federation Council, as well as religious leaders, representatives of foreign diplomatic missions, heroes of the Soviet Union and Russia, and many others.

Guided by its motto, We Remember the Past and Think About the Future, the forum is designed to alert the world to the fact that fascism constitutes a real threat and that people around the world have encountered it once again. This threat consists of turning Ukraine into an anti-Russia, efforts to ban the Russian language and Russian schools there, the persecution of Orthodoxy, the bloody government coup and the rise to power of successors of OUN/UPA, Stepan Bandera and Roman Shukhevich along with collaborators who enjoy proactive Western support, with the Anglo-Saxons at the forefront of this effort.

During the forum, its Organising Committee will present a report on the present-day manifestations of fascism around the world. The agenda also covers the falsification of World War II and Great Patriotic War history, legal assistance to the victims of fascism, and patriotic education for the younger generation.

Participants from Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Uzbekistan, Estonia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Germany, France, Austria, Slovenia, Israel, Poland, the United States and several other countries will take part in the forum via videoconference.

Sergey Lavrov will deliver his greetings to the participants in the forum. Today, 78 years after we defeated fascism, remembering what our fathers, grandfathers and now the great-grandfathers of today’s generation achieved at the cost of their lives is important like never before.

In addition to this, the initiative by the Russian Federation and other co-sponsors to set in motion the annual adoption by the UN General Assembly of a draft resolution titled “Combating glorification of Nazism, neo-Nazism and other practices that contribute to fuelling contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance” is designed to preserve the historical truth about World War II and its outcomes.

Answers to media questions:

Question: The Nobel Foundation has changed its mind and decided to withdraw its invitation to Russian, Belarusian and Iranian ambassadors to attend this year’s award ceremony in Stockholm. But before this move, it argued that inviting diplomatic representatives from all countries to the ceremony was based on the belief “that it is important and right to reach out as widely as possible with the values and messages that the Nobel Prize stands for.” Could you comment on this fickleness on behalf of the Nobel Committee?

Maria Zakharova: What a ridiculous situation. If you had told me something like this about ten years ago, we would have had a laugh and said that this is not the way for grown-ups to behave. They are not just grown-ups, but responsible people vested with power and authority who are not just taking care of their business but performing a mandate that has been issued to them. Moreover, they were not the ones who came up with this whole idea. This is one of the oldest awards, established long before the 21st century.

Let me offer you a more detailed insight into what happened. In a press release published on August 31, 2023, the Nobel Foundation said that it would revive the century-old tradition, suspended in 2022, to invite the heads of all accredited diplomatic missions to the Nobel festivities in Stockholm.

Things happen, of course. There can be printing errors, or unapproved documents getting published, there can be mistakes, or hacking attacks, what have you. But no, this press release was published with the Nobel Foundation’s approval. Its Executive Director, Vidar Helgesen, doubled down on this decision, lending it his weight. He said that this decision was designed to combat the tendency whereby “the world is increasingly divided into spheres, where dialogue between those with differing views is being reduced.” They took the decision to invite ambassadors from all countries to prevent further “polarisation” of the world as well as to follow the path of working together, which meant taking a constructive position since nothing they have done over the past eighteen months worked.

In today’s world, this statement made quite a splash, but only in the West, since the Global South, by which I mean various parts of the world where people follow the principles of cooperation, indivisibility, etc., understand the difference between politics and universal values, and can discern opportunistic behaviour. An impassioned debate ensued among pro-Ukrainian political forces in Sweden, giving rise to new Russophobic outbursts within the Swedish media.

Let me remind you that peace is one of the areas covered by the Nobel Prize. Peace is about preventing and overcoming confrontation. This is what the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded for. In fact, when the foundation’s executives came up with the idea to invite everyone, whether in a moment clarity or, more likely, based on their experience, they deserved a peace prize of their own. But no, it does not work this way. There is always someone to contest the decision and have their way.

Fearing that they themselves would be cancelled, the Nobel Foundation gave in to public pressure from the Russophobic pro-Kiev clique, preferring to make a U-turn and withdraw the invitations. I have not checked whether they withdrew the press release too by replacing or simply deleting it. It would be interesting to take a look.

This is just a petty attitude, short-sightedness, inability to stand up for one’s principles and to stick to any standards on key matters.

The Nobel Foundation attempted to serve a noble cause only to cast a shadow on the impartiality, independence and ability to take a principled position of what used to be one of the most prominent international platforms. Later, through the publication of a large body of archival documents, we learned that the Western intelligence literally imposed the decisions on the Foundation, as well as engaged in intrigues regarding the presentation of awards, politicising the whole process. Today, we do not need to open up the archives or declassify documents, since everything is taking place in plain view.

Question: Can you comment on the attack on a mosque in Limassol, Cyprus, on August 25?

Maria Zakharova: We have seen reports that a person threw a Molotov cocktail at the Köprülü Haci Ibrahim Aga Mosque, causing damage to the building. There were no casualties.

We believe that such acts involving the use of socially dangerous means, wherever they occur and whichever religious facilities they target, are categorically unacceptable and should always result in the most thorough investigations by law enforcement agencies. Furthermore, the competent authorities, apart from ensuring that the perpetrators are brought to justice, also have a duty to prevent such barbaric acts. This particular case of an attack on a religious facility is especially disturbing as, in addition to threatening lives and insulting the feelings of believers, the perpetrators are provoking inter-religious strife and tension in society. But I must say, the leaders of the Republic of Cyprus have reacted promptly and adequately.

Taking into account the specifics of the Cypriot state, they have a priority of maintaining an inter-faith balance and preventing escalation, which could play into the hands of those interested in destabilising the situation, pitting the residents against each other, and undermining the prospects for a settlement.

We know that attacks on religious facilities are the hallmark of terrorists of every stripe. You see what is happening in Ukraine. The police surrounded a convent yesterday, and the bacchanalia against the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra is still ongoing. How many other churches – that are not so prominent and known to the world, but are no less significant to their congregation – are being destroyed (in the literal sense of the word) in the territory of Ukraine? There are hundreds and even thousands of them. We recently published a special report on this.

We strongly believe that all truly civilised countries should prioritise the fight against such practices. I want officials in Nicosia to hear us and admit that it is wrong to draw dividing lines between their own and other countries, to say that the crime against this particular mosque should be condemned and punished. With other countries, they say, one needs to look at the political situation.

No, it is not like that. This is one of the fundamental issues where solutions have long been developed. There is no need to reinvent the wheel or negotiate a common approach for a long and difficult time. It’s already there. It just needs to be put into practice. The way Nicosia reacted to this particular malicious act should be a model response for the desecration of religious facilities around the world. Only together can we say “no” to the terrorists and extremists who do this. It does not matter if it is a mosque, a synagogue, an Orthodox church or a Catholic cathedral, whether it is located in Nicosia, in Kiev or anywhere else, in the Middle East, North America or Southeast Asia. This is the basic principle we all have signed off on, and it should be applied on an equal basis when it comes to such crimes.

Question: The French foreign minister, Catherine Colonna, went on record as saying that a new continental security architecture could not be created without Russia if only because Russia occupies so vast a part of Eurasia. In this connection, I want to understand what can and must become the basis of the new security architecture and on what terms? Besides, Ms Colonna is being economical with the truth, because she says in the same breath that she is in favour of Ukrainian accession to NATO, further weapon supplies to Ukraine, and the continued financing of the Kiev regime. How active are current contacts between the two countries’ foreign ministries?

Maria Zakharova: Let us start with the last question. Our embassy in France is functioning. But the contacts have been minimised because of the position taken by Paris and the activities conducted by France against our country. I am referring, among other things, to the years of illegitimate sanctions against Russia and its people, supplies of weapons that kill Russian citizens, and more.

Now let us analyse Ms Colonna’s statement. We saw her say in an interview that it was necessary “to find a way of building a firm security architecture on the European continent with regard for the interests of all parties.” On the one hand, this may be a beautifully turned phrase that her experts have written for her, routine political jargon. It could be that she said these words, let them slip out of her memory, and turned the page. But maybe it’s something else.

The thing is that we know nothing about any official French proposals in this regard. After all, she said that security should be provided with regard for the interests of all parties, while we have said for years that we are part of the European continent. I think it is high time we said that Western Europe is part of the European continent, while we are its principal part (I mean geographically, not all the rest). It’s all clear as day.

Our former partners have unilaterally disbanded all bilateral cooperation and discussion mechanisms involved in debates on global and regional issues, including the annually convened Working Group on Strategic Stability and European Security that existed at the level of the heads of the foreign and defence ministries of Russia and France. How will they discuss and arrange all this, if they have closed all the openings? Today, there are no grounds for discussing this topic, given the way they do things in Paris. It’s absurd, considering Paris’ role in dragging out the Ukraine conflict, multiplying the number of victims, supplying weapons, and rendering comprehensive assistance to the Kiev regime.

Now let us talk about basic approaches. We believe that every discussion should be based on respect for the mutual interests of contracting parties. We repeatedly said so before the start of the special military operation. Let me remind you that the six months before it began, the entire latter half of 2021 was dedicated to attempts to get through to absolutely anyone (Washington, London, Brussels, and, of course, Paris) in order to say that there is no European security any longer, given that an open phase of conflict existed in Ukraine since 2014, a conflict that brought numerous civilian casualties, and that the West was involved in it in an unseemly manner after having shattered and later destroyed the very same European security. You may remember that we proposed our own vision and put it on paper. This is not just some “rules,” which no one ever heard of before. Those are just backstage manipulative half-rumours. We have put our proposals on paper and sent them to the capitals concerned. Our high-ranking diplomats sent this stuff to explain our fundamental position and approaches. Let me remind you what it all came to – nothing on the West’s part. Nothing but the unrelenting advance of NATO and its military infrastructure towards our borders, the West’s desire to turn Ukraine into an anti-Russian NATO bridgehead, and their total disregard for Russia’s security interests, all of which represent the main reasons why we, after years of repeated attempts to find points of overlap and reach mutual understanding and compromise, opted for a resolute response. Today, the closer NATO countries’ military infrastructure gets to our borders, the more pro-active they are in rushing weapons to Ukraine, the clearer it is that the West as a whole, and Paris in particular, have no real intention to advance towards a new security architecture based on the principle of its indivisibility. Let me remind you that these principles have also been codified.

Question: On August 28, President of Moldova Maya Sandu told CNN that Russia wanted to “overthrow a democratically elected government”and disrupt democratic processes in Moldova, and accused Russia of planning to interfere in upcoming local elections this year and in the presidential election next year. How would you reply to these accusations?

Maria Zakharova: Maya Sandu has made a very timely statement. She has clearly formulated Moldova’s current problems, which include attempts to overthrow the government, to undermine democratic processes and to interfere in elections. These are major problems, which she has formulated clearly. However, she has put the blame on the wrong party. It is she and her team who are to blame for these problems. Standing behind them is the West with its huge investment, and people with foreign passports, who have been planted on Moldova’s political stage, who are promoting the interests of other countries but not the interests of Moldova. This is the reality. Maya Sandu has articulated these problems, but she forgot to mention that she herself has undermined democratic processes, interfered in elections, and distorted the very notion of elections. Chisinau continues to obediently follow the anti-Russia path set for it by the West. The goal is to harm Russia, but Moldova and the Moldovan people have been made hostage in the process.

Using a tried and tested method, Maya Sandu has again blamed Russia for her own failures and her team’s incompetence or even ill intent, claiming that Moscow is to blame for the deplorable situation in Russian-Moldovan relations. Nothing like this is true. This is a lie.

Let’s look at the facts. The current Moldovan authorities (Sandu’s team) continue to undermine the country’s sovereignty and push it deeper into debt, joining the illegal sanctions and forcing alien neo-liberal “values,” including the LGBTQ+ agenda, on the Moldovans. The collective West is expanding into the Moldovan politics and civilisation under their favourite pretext of protecting human rights, freedom and democracy. Everyone has seen what this has brought to other nations.

We believe that the Moldovan people have seen and remember the results of the efforts by the United States and its satellites to “bring civilisation” through armed aggressions, state coups, destruction of statehood, and the barbaric plundering of resources. These criminal actions are camouflaged by Chisinau’s custom-made rhetoric about the “values.” This is why the Moldovans don’t believe the stories made to Western orders about Russia’s responsibility for Moldova’s problems. You can see the trend. Wherever US embassies are active and larger than life, and wherever the West promotes “democracy,” the people are told that Russia is to blame for everything. What exactly is it to blame for?

According to recent polls, nearly two-thirds of Moldovans (57.8 percent) believe that the republic is moving in the wrong direction. I wouldn’t trust this figure if, for example, the Russian media dominated the stage. But they have been shut down. This means that Moldovans have their own opinions or, even when they only watch permitted media, they draw their own conclusions.

This is clear evidence of Moldovans’ true attitude towards their leaders’ anti-Russia statements.

Question: The British media have reported that the United States may return its nuclear weapons to Britain from which they were removed in 2008 due to the reduced nuclear threat. What would be Russia’s reaction to this?

Maria Zakharova: If this step is ever taken, we will view it as escalation, as a step that would take things in a direction that is quite opposite to addressing the pressing issue of pulling all nuclear weapons out of European countries, where they were deployed within the framework of NATO’s “joint nuclear missions.” I put “joint nuclear missions” in quote marks because none of the allied countries have joint or equal access to these nuclear facilities. They not only may not take any decisions regarding the exploitation or use/non-use of American nuclear facilities and warheads deployed in their territories, but they don’t even know what is happening to them. This destabilising practice is clearly spearheaded against Russia, because it provides for joint planning and regular exercises held by the hostile bloc to train in the delivery of nuclear strikes at targets in Russia from the territory of non-nuclear European countries.

Western officials and politicians, as well as media, often say that Moscow is talking too much about nuclear threats through the media. First of all, none of the Russian officials who are in a position to take such decisions or who take part in the process has ever said anything to this effect. Second, our position on this issue has been put forth in our doctrinal documents. And third, the West has always upheld the principle of the freedom of speech. However, what matters in this instance is that it is not just their political analysts or experts who are talking about this, but they are making plans for nuclear strikes and training to hit targets in Russia during military exercises and drills. This is not mere words or discussion of potential scenarios, but practical training to deliver strikes.

We have been saying for many years that this generates strategic risks and undermines regional security and stability. But NATO preferred to disregard our insistent appeals. Moreover, the bloc was declared a “nuclear alliance.” In light of the United States and NATO’s transition to an openly confrontational course of inflicting a “strategic defeat” on Russia, this practice and its development force us to take compensatory countermeasures to reliably protect the security interests of our country and its allies.

We will continue to demand that the Unites States withdraw its weapons to its national territory and dismantle the European infrastructure for their rapid deployment. The fact that the storage facilities which have not been dismantled in Britain may receive US nuclear bombs again is clear proof that Russia’s consistent position is justified.

Question: The new US aid package for Ukraine incudes depleted uranium munitions for the Abrams tanks, which may be delivered to Ukraine within the next few weeks, according to Reuters. Other reports also say that radioactive soil contamination has been registered around the warehouse where such munitions are stored. How would you assess such US actions?

Maria Zakharova: We have commented many times on the delivery of depleted uranium munitions to Ukraine and tried to raise the Western countries’ awareness of this problem on various international platforms. The use of such munitions by the Kiev regime will increase the suffering of civilians, including from the contamination of their country with hazardous substances. They will harm not only the direct victims of such weapons, but also those who launch them and the future generations who will live there. The negative effects of the use of depleted uranium munitions have been described in a number of international reports and are a well-known fact. It is not an issue of debate by scientists and experts, but the definitive answer they have provided to this question.

Regrettably, the threat Russia warned everyone about is becoming a reality. British and now American depleted uranium munitions are turning Ukraine into a hazardous territory.

This has to do with grain. The most popular phrases in Western media are the grain deal, resume as soon as possible, necessary, vital for food security, do everything possible, and take measures against Russia. What grain will be exported and to whom? Grain that has been “fertilised” with depleted uranium? I can understand why German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock spoke about “Ukraine’s cocaine grain.” Because it is no longer grain but some grain mutation. Why hasn’t anyone been talking about this?

The military facilities and the equipment and ammunition delivered to the Kiev regime are legitimate targets, and every destroyed tank or warehouse with such munitions is not just a potential source of cancer but also dead, contaminated earth and a mortal danger to all living things. Remember Yugoslavia? Who other than China, whose media you represent, is aware of and remembers the consequences of NATO’s aggression against Yugoslavia? I would like to remind you that Chinese diplomats were killed during NATO’s illegal and horrible bombing raids. Europeans reported the catastrophic consequences of the use and elimination of such munitions, including at the warehouse in Khmelnitsky, in the spring of 2023. We have already provided the relevant figures.

Question: I have a question about the grain deal, following the talks between Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan. It was reported that Russia's policy is unchanged. Is it right that there has been no actual progress toward resuming the grain deal to date, or no resumption of talks underway?

Maria Zakharova: Yesterday, President of Russia Vladimir Putin answered these questions at length at a news conference. He made it clear that the fulfilment of the obligations that Russia had announced and also taken in good faith, was the key to this puzzle. In fact, every Russian representative has been saying this. As soon as the conditions from the part of the deal concerning Russia and its interests are met, further discussion and progress will follow. As of now, I have not been informed, and I don’t think that you were, of any Russian condition being met, fully or partially, or by a fraction at the very least. I am referring to the problematic issues that we have mentioned and raised because they actually have to do with the implementation of our part of the deal – and not because it is our heart’s desire or political demand we have linked to the deal. As far as I know, none of this has been done. At least, no one had any information that it has as of this morning.

You are absolutely right to raise this question. We get a lot of such questions, but most of them include speculation that the lack of progress on the deal pushes grain prices up or that “failure to reach an agreement threatens food security.” To disavow such speculation, at least partially (I am sure that we will not be able to end it, because it’s part of the political campaign carried out by the West), I think that tomorrow we will publish long piece on this subject on the Foreign Ministry's website with examples, figures and facts.

Question: What is Moscow's attitude to Paris' proposal to build a joint security architecture with Moscow? Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said it should take into account the stability interests of all. At the same time, according to her, building a joint security architecture will not rule out NATO granting membership to Ukraine.

Maria Zakharova: I have already answered this question in detail. I can only add a few words about the part where this does not mean that NATO will refuse membership to Ukraine. I am referring to French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna’s statements in an interview with Le Monde. This idea is not new and shows no brilliance of analysis.

It is obvious to any sane politician that, being neighbours on the same continent, Russia and the EU countries have no other choice but to agree to some principles of coexistence. We had been repeating this during our contacts with the EU at all levels for many years preceding the special military operation. We were not heard. Or, possibly, we were heard, but the other side made a different decision. It is also possible that the decision was not made by the EU, but was ordered from Washington. As a result, the situation changed dramatically. Moreover, tensions ratcheted up over the past year and a half, largely catalysed by the EU statement that everything should be decided “on the battlefield.”

I hope that Catherine Colonna has been reading the statements or blogs of Josep Borrell, who represents European foreign policy (and accordingly, to some extent, France). This is an important factor. It was they who said that everything should be decided “on the battlefield.” Why are they forgetting about it now?

At this stage, this statement by the French Foreign Minister sounds insincere, because what Paris does is at odds with their words. Before suggesting building some joint structure with all interested parties, the West should abandon its aggressive anti-Russia policy, stop the flow of weapons to Ukraine, change the tone of its official rhetoric, take back the statements about the need to inflict a “strategic defeat” on us and stop using the words “regime change” with regard to our country. Actually, such statements should be deemed inappropriate in the 21st century, no matter who they concern. Then there are also the long-term sanctions against our country and people, and companies.

Until this happens, such comments from EU officials are meaningless. I believe that this question should definitely be addressed to Colonna and other representatives who discuss such proposals. What about their own statements that everything should be decided “on the battlefield”? Do they no longer think that, or do they continue in the same vein? This is interesting and important. The word has already been said. For a year and a half, the expression has been used in many written and verbal statements, articles, and official speeches. Are they abandoning those concepts? That's the question.

Question: Can you comment on the words by President of the National Assembly of Armenia Alen Simonyan who called your words about Yerevan's recognition of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity “absurd”? According to Simonyan, under the trilateral agreement, the Lachin corridor should be under the jurisdiction of Russian peacekeepers. But he asks the questions: where is this territory and where are the Russian peacekeepers?

Maria Zakharova: Did he call my words about Armenia's recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan in any way? This is also a question.

It seems to me that this public rhetoric on the brink of something resembling rudeness does not favour the political figures of Armenia. If they want to talk on an expert and good-faith political level, there are many possibilities for that. We have excellent channels of communication with Yerevan in all areas, from state to public. I realise that everyone's roles are scheduled, as to who says what and how they say it. But I am sure that it does not make the people, who represent Armenian society and use such expressions, look good. We have seen and heard a lot from them lately.

Question: Can you comment on the words of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who said that Yerevan's dependence on Moscow for security is a strategic mistake and noted that the republic has already “tasted the bitter fruits” of this mistake. According to Mr Pashinyan, Russia will not be able to ensure Armenia's security in case of need.

Maria Zakharova: I will not comment specifically on this statement. Again, the Armenian Prime Minister has said a lot of things over the past few days.

I think that in summarising all these statements, we can say that you should be able to take responsibility for your own actions, and not endlessly look for the guilty on every occasion. You should take responsibility and not shift it to anyone else. This is the difference between a politician and a statesman and a passer-by who does not think about the national interests of his country. You should be able to be responsible for your own actions. Otherwise it is a bit like the story of a bad dancer’s complaints.

Question: What do you think of the Armenian government's decision to send the Rome Statute to the parliament for ratification? How will it affect Russian-Armenian relations?

Maria Zakharova: We have already asked the Armenian side for clarifications on this matter. We will determine our next steps depending on Yerevan's reply.

Question: Violent clashes continue between Arab tribes and the YPG/PKK terrorist group in the province of Deir ez-Zor in eastern Syria. What does the Foreign Ministry think about these clashes? Does Moscow believe that Damascus has no problems in its relations with Arab tribes? If so, what caused the fighting, according to Moscow?

Maria Zakharova: We support Syria’s unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity, and we have been doing so for a long time. This is our principled approach and framework for assessment of what is happening in the northeast of the country, where foreign military contingents, in particular a US force, have been illegally present for almost a decade. The Americans went to Syria under the pretext of fighting international terrorism even though no one invited them. In reality, the result of their actions has proven to be completely different – it was a geopolitical project to establish military and political control, if not over the whole of Syria, then at least over the eastern part – east of the Euphrates. I don’t think I need to remind you that they have been draining the country’s natural resources. This is an obvious part of the American reality in Syria.

Washington is trying to rely on the Kurds, in every possible way encouraging the separatist ambitions of a certain stratum, including by supplying Kurdish armed groups with weapons and providing exemptions from their unilateral anti-Syria sanctions to the areas they control. Created with the direct assistance of the United States, the self-proclaimed administration of northeastern Syria has now turned into a quasi-state maintained by the power of the US military.

However, things aren’t as smooth as planned. Even before this crisis, there was a certain tension between the Kurds and Arabs living in northeastern Syria arising from the rivalry for the resources at the level of local tribes, clans and communities.

The events of the past few years, if anything, have aggravated the disagreements. Moreover, the Arabs feel like the aggrieved party this time, as they ended up on the sidelines of the new Kurdish-led governance system east of the Euphrates. Not to mention the fact that the Kurds do not hesitate to accuse their opponents of complicity with ISIS terrorists, who largely relied on the support of local tribes during the “caliphate” proclaimed by ISIS, a quasi-state with a certain political and even geographical framework. The Americans, on the other hand, for all their military, political and financial capabilities, apparently failed to resolve a delicate matter like the regulation of interethnic relations. They resort to force or use harsh political tools that run counter to international law or diplomacy, acting as they do.

This is what led up to the recent outbreak of fierce clashes between Kurdish units and militias from Arab tribes. It is important that in any case, we are talking about illegal armed units from the point of view of the SAR Constitution, and these units have received weapons and logistical assistance from the United States.

In this context, the routine statements by Washington officials who continue to assert that US military presence in Syria allegedly restrains ISIS sound untenable. According to our estimates, the situation is exactly the opposite. The United States created a situation where Syria’s legitimate government has been stripped of the opportunity to exercise its constitutional prerogatives in a significant part of the country's territory. If anything, this will lead to the terrorist conglomerate’s revival. In other words, creating chaos that threatens regional security (something they never think about) is what they do best. Controlling chaos does not seem to be their strong point. I don't know if the United States was able to control this chaos before, but at present, it's definitely not what they know how to do.

Question: What is Russia doing to alleviate the tension surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh, including humanitarian issues?

Maria Zakharova: Through the Foreign Ministry, the Defence Ministry, and other relevant agencies, the Russian side maintains constant contact with all stakeholders and takes steps to resolve the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh. Foreign Ministry Special Representative for the Normalisation of Relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan Igor Khovayev discussed this matter during his visit to Yerevan last week. He is currently in Baku, where he will hold consultations with his Azerbaijani partners.

We are working within the framework of the complex of trilateral agreements between the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia for 2020-2022 (1, 2, 3, and 4). We advocate for the unfettered delivery of humanitarian aid to that region through both the Lachin and the Agdam routes. We are also calling for avoiding unnecessary politicisation of this issue.

Notably, in this case the EU, as it has done before, is shamelessly borrowing Russia’s initiatives. However, the EU's actions do not contribute to the normalisation of the situation overall. As I mentioned earlier, the occasional political rhetoric blaming Russia, particularly coming from Yerevan, is unacceptable because it primarily affects the people who are in need of help. One must question the purpose of such political statements made by high-ranking officials in Yerevan. Are they trying to deflect responsibility, or, as many experts suggest (I’d rather think this is not true) are they complicating the resolution of the issue? I think we should do everything necessary to improve the situation and minimise the suffering of the people. Such statements, which we hear from time to time ˗ and there have been quite a few of them in recent days coming from Yerevan ˗ undermine the overall effort and do not serve the main purpose, which is to help people.

Question: What conditions must be absolutely met for the grain deal to be resumed? What alternatives are available for resuming the arrangement that the Russian side declined?

Maria Zakharova: I have commented on this earlier. I would like to refer you to President Putin's news conference yesterday. Our President, relevant agencies, and special representatives participating in the negotiating process have constantly discussed this. In complying with what has always been part of the agreements. These are basic things. I don't have such a ruler or measurement scale. There are things that have been agreed upon. They need to be implemented, and everything must be done to make them work.

Question: Due to the siege, ration cards have been introduced, and people in Artsakh are receiving only 200 grammes of bread per person per day. You have mentioned Russia's efforts. How would you describe Azerbaijan's actions in this regard, which are reminiscent of Nazi tactics during the siege of Leningrad, where they tried to starve its residents out?

Maria Zakharova: I just answered this question. I explained what the Russian side is doing and what obstructs our efforts to get there. It is now critical to unite the efforts of all those who care about the residents of Nagorno-Karabakh. Repeatedly shifting responsibility, especially accusing Moscow of all manner of sins, though not failure to act in this situation, is unacceptable. It is not only because it is out of sync with the historical and present spirit of our relations and the contribution that Russia has made to the settlement process, but also because it does not help resolve the problem, but only exacerbates it.

I don't believe that people in Yerevan don't understand this. I refuse to believe it, being aware of the intricacies of the situation, the sensitive points, and the entire negotiating process from start to finish, since I was involved in it. I don't believe they do not understand that these statements about Russia are harming the residents of Nagorno-Karabakh, among others.

Question: I’m more talking about Baku's policy which seeks to starve the people out.

Maria Zakharova: We are taking a series of practical measures, which I have already mentioned in order to address this situation.

Question: On September 1, three Armenian servicemen died as a result of a Baku-sponsored escalation on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border. What is your comment on Azerbaijan’s actions? Isn’t this an aggression against Russia’s CSTO ally?

Maria Zakharova: We hear Yerevan’s statements to effect that its dependence on Moscow is a hindrance in ensuring its security. But the people who represent their country should practice a responsible approach towards the statements they make. Don’t they know how many citizens of Armenia were saved thanks to Moscow’s actions? Isn’t that so? Do people in Armenia know nothing about this? Of course, they do! So, why is it being forgotten now? It was this way for decades. Just think of the number of real surges in tension that were put down thanks to intervention from Moscow and from President Vladimir Putin personally. Are people in Yerevan unaware about this? They are not. So, why do they allow and permit themselves to make these statements? Do they want to rewrite history? They will fail, because people know their Armenia and its new and centuries-old history, and they know about Russia’s role in the fate of the Armenian people and Armenia.

We regret the death of the Armenian servicemen at the village of Sotk. We call on the sides to refrain from any actions leading to a rise in tensions, let alone loss of human life. This tragic incident is yet further evidence of the low efficiency of the EU mission deployed in Armenia.

We think that it is necessary to conduct regular and systematic work to delimit and demarcate the Armenia-Azerbaijan border with Russian consultative assistance and with simultaneous implementation of a number of confidence-building measures. We are also in favour of deploying a CSTO mission in Armenia’s border area. In this matter, the ball is in Yerevan’s court, as the other CSTO members have expressed a willingness to take this step.

Question: What is your response to Azerbaijan’s open support for Kiev’s position in its conflict with Russia? Baku has repeatedly confirmed its stance. Specifically, Azerbaijan’s Ambassador in Kiev, Seymur Mardaliyev, spoke about “Russia’s aggression” on August 11 and declared that Azerbaijan had assumed “political commitments to provide financial, humanitarian and other assistance to Ukraine.” Isn’t this creating problems in bilateral relations between Moscow and Baku, as distinct from Sputnik’s broadcasts in Artsakh?

Maria Zakharova: We resolve these kinds of problems, like many others, with various countries through bilateral channels. There are situations where countries, in particular unfriendly countries, block contacts and refuse to maintain a dialogue. This has nothing to do with our dialogue with Baku. Therefore, we respond to all issues, including Azerbaijan-related problems, in a bilateral format.

Question: You went to school in China and graduated from a Chinese school. You are fluent in Chinese and defended a thesis on Chinese traditions…

Maria Zakharova: I want to stop this fake story. I went to the Soviet/Russian Embassy school in China. I have a diploma from a Russian school. I attended Chinese language courses at a Chinese school, but I graduated from a Russian school. I received a higher education from MGIMO University, the School of International Information, International Journalism Department.

I don’t want to interrupt your sweet narrative but I have never counted myself among linguists and people fluent in languages. I certainly can communicate, but I don’t deserve this high assessment.

Question: I was writing a series of articles about Moscow and the Moscow Zoo for our Russian compatriots, their children and grandchildren. Unexpectedly, a “Moscow resident,” with a tail, was born to Chinese pandas at the zoo. Who owns this cub? People are agitated. The situation is like the one in the Prostokvashino cartoon: “We have taken one cow and will give back one cow not to spoil the records.” You are an expert on things Chinese after all. Will we have to give back the cub? Who owns it? Are international problems likely to crop up?

Maria Zakharova: This falls within the purview of the Moscow Zoo. I think its press service will be pleased to answer this question. I fully trust them in this matter. I think it would be wonderful if they were to regularly inform the public about these things. They are doing a good job in this regard as it is.

The Moscow public was highly emotional, as were internet users, who have no chance to visit the zoo but have seen the photographs. I think they will continue to inform everyone in the same spirit.

To tell the truth, I am concerned as a person and emotionally over a different matter related to the panda family at the Moscow Zoo. I want to know what they will name their child.

Question: A contest should be held…

Maria Zakharova: This isn’t an official proposal from the Ministry, but I think the idea of a panda naming contest is interesting.

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