Russia to convene informal UN Security Council meeting on Crimea next week - TASS

Russia will convene an informal UN Security Council meeting on Crimea on March 17, Russia’s first deputy envoy to the UN, Dmitry Polyanskiy, said in his Telegram channel.

The diplomat said that Western nations announced an Arria formula meeting devoted to Crimea, to be held at the UN Security Council on Friday, March 12.

"Ukrainians and their Western sponsors have long been using the anniversary of Crimea’s reunification with Russia as a pretext for lamenting alleged human rights violations in Russia’s Crimea, telling the world once again that it does not recognize its ‘occupation’ by Russia and tossing another portion of fake news about the Russian peninsula to the media," Polyanskiy said.

According to the Russian diplomat, Russia suggested inviting Crimean residents to the meeting, but the initiative was rejected.