Speaking at the Special Urgent Ukraine Session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, which was held as the Russia-Ukraine war approaches its first year, Csaba Körösi called on all parties to support “the renewal of the Black Sea Grain Initiative in March and the acceleration of inspections”.
“Continuous and timely implementation of this initiative is not only critical to saving lives and stabilizing global prices, but also provides a powerful example of crisis management in action,” said Körösi.
Pointing out that due to the war between Russia and Ukraine, Europe has witnessed desperation, displacement, destruction and death that it has not seen for decades, Körösi said, “The systematic targeting of civilian infrastructure, which is a direct violation of international humanitarian law, has left millions of Ukrainians without energy, water and heat in the middle of winter. left,” he said.
The President of the General Assembly urged all parties and the international community to re-commit to the values, principles and purposes of the United Nations Charter, saying, “Moscow can end the war it has started and must put an end to this terrible bloodshed.”
“Ukraine used its right of self-defense”
Speaking at the UN General Assembly, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said about the war that has been going on for nearly a year in his country, “Ukraine used its right of self-defense in the UN Charter when its people chose to fight for their lives.”
“Despite everything, we were able to stop the much stronger aggressor and expel him from half of the newly occupied territory,” said Kuleba, adding that “no one should be fooled by Russia’s empty calls for negotiations.”
Noting that “thousands of Ukrainian children were forcibly transferred and given to Russian families for adoption to be retrained as Russians,” the Ukrainian Foreign Minister said, “This is genocide.”
Using the words “There are no two sides in this war: there is an aggressor and a victim”, Kuleba called on the member states to take the side of the UN Charter, international law and General Assembly resolutions.
“The decision to be voted will not be of any use”
Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, who took the floor after Ukraine, responded to the accusation by saying, “Starting history on February 24, 2022 and ignoring everything that happened before is an attempt by the West to surprise others and hide the true causes of this conflict.” gave.
Nebenzia stated that the Kiev administration started a special military operation of her country “to stop the 8-year war” against the people of Donetsk and Luhansk, and emphasized that the statements accusing the Russian Federation of destroying global or regional security are “hypocritical”.
The Russian representative said that by the end of 2021, Moscow had made several attempts to de-escalate and guarantee security, but such measures were rejected by the United States and its allies.
Nebenzia added:
“Ukraine is nothing more than a pawn, and while Moscow is ready for a diplomatic solution, its opponents are not spared the vain illusion that they can defeat a nuclear power. A voted resolution will be of no use.”
On the other hand, the US Permanent Representative to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield reminded that Russia denied that it would attack Ukraine at the emergency UN Security Council meeting held last year.
Evaluating that Russia’s denial policy continues today, Greenfield said, “We saw what happened. Kindergartens and hospitals are bombed. Innocent civilians are being killed. We are facing the worst refugee crisis in Europe since the Second World War.”
Pointing out that the draft resolution that will be put to the vote at the UN General Assembly tomorrow is a historical draft, Greenfield said, “Let’s support diplomacy and dialogue. Let’s say ‘yes’ to diplomacy and dialogue.”
The bill will be voted on
As the Russia-Ukraine War is in its first year, the UN will also discuss the latest security situation in the region during the week both within the framework of the General Assembly and the Security Council.
Representatives of more than 70 countries, including Turkey, will speak at the General Assembly held today. In the session that will continue tomorrow, a non-binding resolution that is expected to be supported by many countries will be put to the vote.
In the draft resolution, member states will be demanded to support a lasting, comprehensive and just peace in Ukraine, while a call will be made from Russia to withdraw all its military forces from the territory of Ukraine.