More than a hundred guests, including military attachés from other countries, gathered in the embassy hall in Washington. At the same time, an anti-Russian protest was going on outside the door.
On February 23, the Russian embassy in Washington hosted an ostentatious banquet in honor of Russia’s “Defender of the Fatherland Day” against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine. Visited by Foreign Policy magazine reporter.
At the invitation of the Russian Ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Antonov, more than a hundred diplomats from various countries gathered in the embassy’s grand ballroom decorated with six chandeliers and floor-to-ceiling peach satin curtains. The guests, who drank vodka and wine, ate puff pastry with caviar, stuffed eggplant with pickles and Georgian style, served by waiters on silver plates. Photos allegedly provided by civilian witnesses and “evidence of the crimes committed by the Ukrainian Nazis in Donbass” were posted in front of the entrance to the hall.
During the banquet, Ambassador Anatoly Antonov raised a toast in which he complained about the violation of the principles of international relations defined by the UN Charter. In his speech, he stated that Russia would resolve the problems peacefully and eventually offered to have a drink for the Russian army. At the end of his speech, the anthem of the Russian Federation began to play in the hall.
As Foreign Policy noted, most of those invited were military attachés from other embassies, mostly from South and East Asia and Africa. On the same day, 39 countries abstained or voted against the UN resolution to leave Ukraine for Russian troops, while 141 countries backed it.
Diplomats were celebrating a Russian holiday as a protest was held in front of the building to mark the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The protesters, who were wrapped in Ukrainian flags at the gates and shouting “Shame on Russia”, were seen by every guest when they entered the embassy.
The previous day, they wrote that on February 24, activists in Warsaw woke up Russian diplomats on the occasion of the anniversary of the invasion. A group of Ukrainians and Poles fired blasts and turned on the siren around 6:00 am to remind them of the war.
They also wrote that President Vladimir Putin did not say anything about the anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Armed Forces. According to the Institute for War Studies, the Russian leadership does not want to once again draw attention to military failures.
Source: Focus
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