Status: 09/28/2022 01:57 am
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy has called on the world to take decisive action against possible annexations in the face of the Russian sham referendums. These would be crimes against all states, he said in the UN Security Council.
In a session requested by Ukraine, the UN Security Council discussed mock referendums in the Russian-held areas of the country. In a video address to the panel, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the international community to take decisive action against a possible imminent annexation of parts of his country by Russia.
“Annexion is the kind of action that sets him alone against all of humanity. A clear signal is now needed from every country in the world,” he said of Russian President Putin’s intentions. Any illegal annexation is a crime against all states. UN Secretary-General António Guterres recently described a possible annexation of the areas as a violation of international law.
Selenskyj: Referendums end of diplomacy
The Ukrainian President called the votes a “cynical attempt” to mobilize the men in the occupied territories for the Russian army. The Russian recognition of the “pseudo-referendums” means “that there is nothing to discuss with the incumbent Russian president,” Zelenskyj said, rejecting negotiations with Moscow. Ukraine will “act to defend its people,” he added in a video later published on Telegram.
Russia’s ambassador to the UN, Vasily Nebensia, on the other hand, called the “referendums” “transparent” and condemned the “propaganda” of the West, the sole aim of which was to “suck Russia dry” in order to “subdue it to its own will”. .
Zelenskyj also warned against the destruction of international diplomacy by Russia. Moscow’s representatives did not use weapons in the UN Security Council, he said. “But surely nobody will be surprised if this role of the UN Security Council turns into a zone of violence on the part of the representatives of Russia.” It is only a matter of time before Moscow destroys the last functioning international institution, he warned.
US and China support Ukraine
UN Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo said at the Security Council meeting that the United Nations continued to fully support “the sovereignty, unity, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine”. China also called for respecting the “territorial integrity of all countries”. Beijing’s stance on this is “consistent and clear,” said China’s ambassador to the UN, Zhang Jun.
Resolution against Russia planned
Despite Russia’s right of veto in the UN Security Council, the US and Albania announced that they would introduce a resolution condemning the “sham referendums” in Ukraine. It called on member states not to recognize any changes to Ukraine’s status and “obliges Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukraine,” said US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield