Anjali Sharma
GG News Bureau
WASHINGTON DC, 8th May. Russian President Vladimir Putin marked his fifth term in office on Tuesday and there are considerable differences within the European Union over the correct way to handle invitations to the ceremony.
Many EU diplomats from countries such as France, Hungary and Slovakia want to send representatives to Putin’s swearing-in ceremony in order to keep channels of dialogue open, was reported by German news agency DPA.
Germany and other EU states consider participation to be inappropriate in view of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“Germany will not be attending this event,” a spokeswoman for the Foreign Office in Berlin said.
In Germany’s case, the government has recalled the German ambassador in Moscow, Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, to Berlin for a week of consultations after cyberattacks on the Social Democratic Party and German companies.
The German government blames a unit of the Russian military intelligence service for the attacks.
European Union’s official representative in Moscow will not be present at Tuesday’s ceremony, a spokesman for the European External Action Service said late in the evening in Brussels.
Foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell had spoken out against the EU’s participation in the event.
According to diplomats, there were dissenting voices, which are said to have warned that not attending the ceremony could give Russia an excuse to ignore even more diplomatic rules and norms in future.
Putin intends to take the oath for a further term in office as Russian president on Tuesday morning. This will mark the start of six more years as head of state.
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