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Moscow to shun cooperation with new UN expert on human rights in Russia — envoy

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights announced on Friday the appointment of Bulgaria's Mariana Katzarova as special rapporteur for human rights in Russia, effective May 1

MOSCOW, June 5. /TASS/. Russia does not intend to cooperate with Mariana Katzarova, the newly appointed UN Human Rights Council special rapporteur for human rights in Russia, who took office on May 1, as she will act in accordance with Western guidelines in order to put political pressure on Moscow, Gennady Gatilov, Russia's permanent representative to the UN headquarters in Geneva, said on Monday.

He pointed out that Katzarova "is and always has been an active Russophobe, having held other positions in the human rights field." "We cannot expect anything good towards us from her end; no objectivity, no proper assessment of the human rights situation in Russia. So, for us, the situation here is quite clear," Gatilov said on the Rossiya-24 TV channel.

"The post was also created on the basis of an anti-Russian resolution at the UN Human Rights Council, which is completely detached from any real concern for human rights," the envoy said. "Everything is highly politicized, so we expect that Katzarova’s activities in this position will continue along this narrative <...> of Western attitudes on human rights. Their task is to use Katzarova and the rapporteur's office she heads to exert political pressure on Russia. So, we have already decided for ourselves what our position is and we are not going to cooperate with her or her office."

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights announced on Friday the appointment of Bulgaria's Mariana Katzarova as special rapporteur for human rights in Russia, effective May 1. The decision to create the post, which was sharply criticized by Moscow, was made on October 7, 2022 by the UN Human Rights Council, which approved an anti-Russian resolution at the initiative of Western countries.

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