OREANDA-NEWS  Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov intends to visit Malta in December 2024 — this will be his first visit to a European Union (EU) country since the beginning of the special operation in Ukraine (SVO). The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, told Vedomosti about this.

According to her, Lavrov will take part in a meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE Ministerial Council). She noted that the country hosting this event is obliged to provide an opportunity for all OSCE member states to work.

"OSCE delegations are regularly informed about the progress of preparations. Additional practical details, including invitations, will be sent to all delegations in due course," the Maltese Embassy in Moscow noted. The last time Lavrov visited an EU country was in December 2021 — then he also participated in the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting, which was held in Stockholm, Sweden.

Earlier, Sergey Lavrov answered a question at a conference on Eurasian security about the possibility of ending the conflict in Ukraine with a "draw". He was skeptical about the chances of such a development.