Several participants at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organisation (PABSEC) summit held in Bucharest on Friday protested against the presence of Russia’s Parliament speaker Sergei Naryshkin, with part of the members of the Ukraine’s delegation posting placards and clapping their hands over the table during the Russian official’s speech.
Soon after Sergei Naryshkin began his speech in the Romanian Senate, six Ukrainian MPs came to the front holding two placards reading: “Putin return Crimea back to us”, “2008 – Georgia, 2014 – Ukraine – Who’s next? – Putin stop!”, Mediafax informs. At the same time, a member of the Ukrainian delegation shouted: “Get out of Crimea.”
The Romanian Senate Speaker Calin Popescu Tariceanu invited the Ukrainian members to take their seats in the hall. The Russian Duma’s speaker went on delivering his speech.
At the end of the speech, some attendees applauded and some others clapped their hands over the table for several seconds while vociferating.
Naryshkin: No NATO structure could save Paris
In his speech, Naryshkin said that Russia has nothing against the anti-missile shield in Deveselu, but mentioned he believed the shield is the choice made by the Romanian political class, and not by the Romanians. The Russian Parliament Speaker also stated that by extending the NATO defense system, a lot of money are spent out of the budgets of all NATO member states, including from the Romanian tax payers.
However, the Russian official said that USA had convinced Russia that the anti-missile shield from Deveselu is not targeted against the Russian Federation. “Our American partners’ sincerity has been obvious ever since,” Naryshkin said.
He further pointed out that the real threats would not come from Russia’s part, but also from the others’ side. “The terror attacks in Paris confirmed all that we had been saying for all these 20 years. No NATO infrastructure, neither all other anti-missel shields could save Paris from those terror attacks,” he argued.
Convened in Bucharest for the 46th plenary session of the General Assembly of PABSEC to mark the end of the Romanian chairmanship of the organisation, the member states adopted a declaration firmly condemning international terror in all its manifestations and forms that have killed thousands of innocent victims while threatening the shared values on which free and open societies are built.
Rotational presidency of the PABSEC is taken over by Russia. Chairman-in-office of PABSEC Calin Popescu Tariceanu, the Chairman of Romania’s Senate, handed over the office to the Russian Federation.
However, Sergei Naryshkin is on a list that bans several Russian officials to enter European Union territory.
In retort, the Romanian Foreign Ministry informed that Naryshkin could be invited at the PABSEC summit in Bucharest considering “the international law obligation to allow the access of those who are enjoying privileges and immunities based on a multilateral agreement.”
PABSEC was established in 1993, and it is currently composed of 76 parliamentarians representing 12 states from the Black Sea region: Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, the Republic of Moldova, Romania, the Russian Federation, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine.