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Several OSCE boycotts

Ukraine is to boycott a meeting this week of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) because Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will be able to attend, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said on Tuesday. The Baltic countries – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – will also stay away from the meeting, which begins Thursday in North Macedonia’s capital, Skopje, according to a joint communique from the three Baltic states. They believe that Lavrov’s participation “risks legitimising the aggressor Russia as a rightful member of our community of free nations”. The OSCE is an international organisation with 57 member countries, aiming to ensure peace and stability in Europe. The Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) began during the Cold War as part of the Helsinki process. In 1994 it was renamed the OSCE. Lavrov said on Monday that North Macedonia had agreed to allow him to attend the annual meeting of the security organisation. /ritzau/