Ambassador of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) to the Russian Federation Olga Makeeva said Tuesday that the embassy's opening is scheduled to take place in June.
"As for the opening of the DPR embassy in Russia, a location has already been chosen for it in a convenient area of Moscow," the Russian ambassador said, noting that "the embassy opening is scheduled for June. We will announce the exact date as soon as everything is ready," Makeeva said.
According to the official, there are active preparations already in progress. Redecoration and desk arrangements have yet to be completed, she said. Several outstanding organizational issues and accreditation and registration procedures also remain to be addressed, Makeeva said.
Last May 6, the head of the Donetsk People’s Republic, Denis Pushilin, appointed Olga Makeeva as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Russia. The head of the Lugansk People's Republic, Leonid Pasechnik, appointed Rodion Miroshnik to the same position.
Russian President Vladimir Putin recognized the sovereignty of the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics on February 21. Afterward, friendship, cooperation, and mutual assistance treaties were signed with the republics' leaders.
On February 24, following Kiev's non-compliance with the terms of the Minsk agreement and Russia's eventual recognition of the sovereignty of the Donbass republics, Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a denazification and demilitarization operation in Ukraine.
Since then, Moscow has faced a wide range of punitive sanctions by Western countries and their European allies, targeting Russian companies and the oil and gas industry. Russia has condemned the support given to Ukraine by the West and the U.S.-led NATO military bloc amid the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. Kiev, for its part, has claimed that Moscow's operation was completely unprovoked and rejected claims that it was planning to retake the Donbass republics by force.