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Coronavirus pandemic

Russia ready for coronavirus vaccine cooperation within Council of Europe - Lavrov

Russian Foreign Minister also said the Council of Europe should not "turn a blind eye" on the discrimination of Russians and Russian-speaking residents in Ukraine and the Baltic states

MOSCOW, November 4. /TASS/. Moscow is ready for coronavirus vaccine cooperation, particularly within the Council of Europe, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an address to an online ministerial session of the Council of Europe on Wednesday.

He pointed out that a coronavirus vaccine named Sputnik V had already been registered in Russia and work on two more vaccines was underway. "We are ready to cooperate with others in terms of vaccination, particularly on the Council of Europe’s platform," Lavrov said.

Lavrov emphasized that countries should put the need to protect the health of their people above political and economic considerations.

"The coronavirus pandemic has made it clear that Europeans need to unite in the face of common threats," the Russian Foreign Minister concluded.

Discrimination of Russians

Lavrov also said the Council of Europe should not "turn a blind eye" on the discrimination of Russians and Russian-speaking residents in Ukraine and the Baltic states.

"Millions are discriminated in Ukraine and the Baltic states for being Russian and speaking the Russian language. Hundreds of thousands are listed as ‘non-citizens’ and are deprived of basic rights. The Council of Europe should not turn a blind eye to this apartheid of the 21 century, as that causes irreparable damage to its reputation," Lavrov said cited by the Russian Foreign Ministry as saying.

The 130th session of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe is held in Athens as a video conference. The session is attended in person by Secretary General of the Council of Europe Marija Pejcinovic Buric, President of the European Court of Human Rights Robert Spano, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) Rik Daems and Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic. Due to the coronavirus restrictions, the foreign ministers of the 47 member states of the Council of Europe are taking part in the session via video conferencing. Their speeches are not broadcast.

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