Lavrov says late envoy Churkin part of his life
MOSCOW. Feb 21 (Interfax) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has commented on the death of his colleague and friend, Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin, and recalled dedicating a poem to him in 1994.
"Vitaly Churkin died in the line of duty, when his 65th birthday was just a few hours away Moscow time. He was a part of my life. Both of us were appointed deputy foreign ministers in spring 1990. I was supervising UN affairs, and he was dealing with the Balkans following designation as the special envoy of the Russian president for the settlement of crises in the former Yugoslavia. Hence, he spent practically the entire month of February 1994 in the conflict-ridden Bosnia and Herzegovina to push for an impartial inquiry of UN experts into the explosion at the Markale market in Sarajevo, for which it was attempted to unfoundedly blame the Serbs," the Russian Foreign Ministry's Facebook page quoted Lavrov as saying.
"He celebrated his 42nd birthday in Sarajevo, where sniper attacks occurred daily, he achieved the desired result, and I decided that I would congratulate him in verse," Lavrov said.
The ministry also posted the poem on Facebook.
"We will always remember Vitaly, and he will always be part of the history of our country, our people and international relations," Lavrov wrote in the book of condolences opened by the Foreign Ministry.