OSCE PA appoints special representative for parliamentary dialogue on Ukraine

That's according to a statement posted on the OSCE PA's website, Ukrinform reports.

In her appointment letter, OSCE PA President Margareta Cederfelt (Sweden) noted that the OSCE PA was established with a mission to develop measures that prevent and resolve conflicts in the OSCE region. "In this spirit, I believe that the resolution of this conflict requires more intensified engagement and support from us, the parliamentarians of the OSCE," she wrote.

She called on Special Representative Lopatka "to explore all available avenues to foster dialogue, as appropriate and feasible, to support the peaceful resolution of the war and addressing the direct and indirect impact of the war."

Lopatka, a member of the Austrian parliament since 2003, was elected Vice-President of the Assembly at the OSCE PA Remote Session in July 2021 and has served as State Secretary in the Austrian Foreign Ministry.

According to the statement, as OSCE PA Special Representative for Parliamentary Dialogue on Ukraine, Lopatka is tasked with taking initiatives to assist the Russian Federation and Ukraine to engage in parliamentary dialogue, as appropriate, and coordinating closely with the OSCE Chairmanship and executive structures, as well as other international actors, on the promotion of coherent actions on dialogue facilitation between the Russian Federation and Ukraine.

On February 24, Russia launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine and started bombing Ukrainian cities, towns and villages. Russian troops unleashed mass terror in temporarily occupied territories.