Man image: U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, front center right, and North Macedonia Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani, front center left, are pictured with other officials at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe meeting in Skopje, North Macedonia, Nov. 29, 2023.

The chief diplomat of the European Union, Josep Borrell, ignored the ministerial meeting of the OSCE where the head of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Sergey Lavrov, was present. 

The EU delegation was, nonetheless, represented at the OSCE Ministerial Council. Instead of Borrell, the Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to the OSCE, Rasa Ostaruskaite, spoke on behalf of the EU.

The European official condemned Russia and Belarus for their aggression against Ukraine and other countries.

It's worth noting that the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, also did not attend the meeting of the OSCE Ministerial Council, boycotting the event due to the presence of Russian FM Sergey Lavrov.

Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania's foreign ministers also supported Ukraine. Poland joined the boycott on November 29.

In turn, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Skopje but left the summit shortly before Lavrov's arrival.