Russian diplomats have high hopes for OSCE observer mission in crisis-torn Ukraine
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Russia's foreign ministry says it hopes a monitoring mission in Ukraine will help ease the tensions in Ukraine.
Ukraine was engulfed in anti-government rallies for three months before President Viktor Yanukovych fled the country and the interim government was appointed.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said in a statement on Friday that Moscow hopes that the 200-strong team of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe "will help to overcome the internal Ukrainian crisis" and ensure the respect for human rights there.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Russia had raised concerns about the situation in Russian-speaking south-eastern regions including the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea. Moscow on Friday formally sealed Crimea's annexation, less than a week following a referendum that overwhelmingly voted to join Russia.