Addressing a UN Security Council meeting on alleged atrocities committed in Ukraine following Russia’s February 24 invasion, Lavrov on Thursday accused Ukraine of posing threats to Russian security and “brazenly trampling” on Russians’ rights and Russian speakers in Ukraine. “I can assure you that we will never accept it,” said Lavrov, who came into the council chamber to speak and then left. “Everything I said today just confirms that the decision to conduct the special military operation was inevitable.” He said countries that supply weapons to Ukraine and train its soldiers were parties to the conflict, adding that “the deliberate instigation of this conflict by the collective West has gone unpunished.” Ukraine’s Western allies, he added, were “covering up the crimes of the Kiev regime.” United States Secretary of State Anthony Blinken pledged that Washington would continue to support Ukraine to defend itself. “The very international order that we have gathered here to support is being destroyed before our eyes. We can’t let go [Russian] Chairman [Vladimir] Putin is getting away with it,” Blinken told the council. Lavrov was not in the room when Blinken and some other US allies spoke, appearing only shortly before his own speech. The U.S. announced nearly $3 billion in new military aid to Ukraine last month, making it the largest U.S. aid package for Ukraine since Russian forces invaded its neighbor. Thousands have been killed and Ukrainian cities reduced to ruins by invading Russian forces.
“Totally unacceptable”
The Security Council meeting was held during the annual meeting of world leaders for the UN General Assembly. The council has been unable to take any meaningful action on Ukraine because Russia is a veto-wielding permanent member along with the US, France, UK and China. Thursday’s meeting is at least the 20th time the Security Council has met this year on Ukraine. International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Karim Khan told the council that there are “reasonable grounds” to believe that crimes within the court’s jurisdiction have been committed in Ukraine. The Hague-based court handles war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and crimes of aggression. Hahn said the priorities of the ICC’s investigation were the deliberate targeting of political objects and the transfer of populations from Ukraine, including children. The US said estimates from various sources, including Moscow, show that authorities have “interrogated, arrested and forcibly displaced” up to 1.6 million Ukrainians in Russia since Moscow’s invasion. The US, UK and other members have called on nations to ensure Russia is held accountable for atrocities they say Moscow has committed in Ukraine. “We must make it clear to President Putin that his attack on the Ukrainian people must stop … that there can be no impunity for those who commit atrocities,” British Foreign Secretary James Cleverley said, adding that the world needed to reject his “list of lies » of Moscow. . UN chief Antonio Guterres told the meeting that talk of a nuclear conflict was “totally unacceptable”. Putin threatened on Wednesday to use nuclear weapons to defend Russia. Guterres told the Council’s ministerial meeting that he was concerned about plans for “so-called ‘referendums’”. “Any annexation of the territory of one state by another state resulting from the threat or use of force is a violation of the UN Charter and international law,” Guterres said. Referendums on joining Russia are due to be held from Friday to Tuesday in several mainly Russian-controlled regions in eastern and southern Ukraine, which make up about 15 percent of the country’s territory. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the priority is to resume dialogue without conditions and that both sides show restraint and not escalate tensions. “China’s position on Ukraine is clear. The sovereignty, territorial integrity of all countries should be respected, and the reasonable security concerns of all countries should be taken seriously,” Wang said. Asked if he could speak with Lavrov at the Security Council on Thursday, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said he would “keep a safe social distance.”
