By Janet Ekstract
NEW YORK- On February 24, the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, UN Security Council (UNSC) Ministerial Meeting was convened on the issue of Ukraine and the war there. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a formal statement to at the meeting reiterated that he had warned the UNSC on February 17, 2022 that Russia would invade Ukraine. Blinken emphasized that he had stated at the time that Russia would “manufacture a pretext” and then use all weapons at its disposal as well as “cyber-attacks to strike pre-identified targets, including Kyiv, with the aim of toppling Ukraine’s democratically elected government.” The U.S. secretary of state further stated: “Russia’s representative – the same representative who will speak today – called these and I quote “groundless accusations.”
The secretary of state said that because of Ukraine’s extraordinary resistance that “President Putin failed in his primary objective to conquer Ukraine, end its existence as an independent country, and absorb it into Russia.” Blinken referenced the “snap referenda in four occupied parts of Ukraine, deported Ukrainians, bussed in Russians, held sham votes at gunpoint, and then manipulated the results to claim near unanimous support for joining the Russian Federation.” He cited the fact that more than 13 million Ukrainians were “uprooted “ from their homes and that Putin “destroyed more than half of the country’s energy grid, bombed more than 700 hospitals, 2,600 schools and abducted at least 6,000 Ukrainian children – some as young as four months old – and relocated them to Russia.”
Blinken said that when Ukraine defended itself in a counteroffensive that was able to take back a huge area of its territory that Putin conscripted “an additional 300,000 men – throwing more and more of russia’s young people into a meat grinder of his own making. And he unleashed the Wagner Group – mercenaries who have committed atrocities from Africa to the Middle East, and now in Ukraine.” He lauded the Ukrainians for how they have “fought bravely to defend their nation, their freedom, the right to determine their own future. And they’ve demonstrated inspiring unity in helping one another endure Moscow’s relentless assault.” He reiterated that “the vast majority of member states have voted multiple times to condemn Russia’s violations of the UN Charter and reject its illegal attempt to seize Ukrainian territory.”
“If we do not defend these basic principles, we invite a world in which might makes right, the strong dominate the weak,” Blinken commented in his statement to the UNSC. He added: “That’s the world this body was created to end. And members of this council have a unique responsibility to make sure that we do not return to it. We can do that in three ways.” First, Blinken explained that there must be a “push for a just and durable peace” – but he said for a just peace, “it must uphold the principles at the heart of the UN Charter: sovereignty, territorial integrity, independence.” He said there has to be a guarantee that Russia isn’t able to rearm itself or relaunch the war in a few months or a few years. A crucial caveat he commented is: “Any peace that legitimizes Russia’s seizure of land by force will weaken the charter and send a message to would-be aggressors everywhere that they can invade countries and get away with it.”
He reminded members of the UNSC that they have a “fundamental responsibility” to make certain that any peace is a “just and durable” one. Blinken urged Council members to “not be fooled by calls for a temporary or unconditional ceasefire.” He cautioned that Russia will use any lull in fighting to “consolidate control over the territory its illegally seized and replenish its forces for further attacks.” Blinken reminded the Council that that is what happened with Russia’s first assault on Ukraine “froze in 2015.” He further stated in a caveat: “No member of this council should call for peace while supporting Russia’s war on Ukraine and on the UN Charter.” Blinken also reminded the UNSC of one crucial reality: “In this war, there is an aggressor and there is a victim.” A second step Blinken said is that despite the council’s work toward ending the war in Ukraine, there are other pressing issues to international peace and security that must be dealt with urgently. Blinken cited the fact that Russia’s contributions to peacekeeping, UNICEF and food security are a drop in the bucket compared to what the U.S. contributes. The third step Blinken said is to “reaffirm our commitment to upholding what the UN Charter calls, and I quote, “the dignity and worth of the human person.”
A warning from Blinken is to remain vigilant in documenting “Russia’s war crimes and crimes against humanity, and share this evidence with investigators and prosecutors so that one day, the perpetrators can be held accountable.” He further warned: “Day after day of Russia’s atrocities, it’s easy to become numb to the horror, to lose our ability to feel shock and outrage. But we can never let the crime Russia is committing become our new normal.” He added: “We must force ourselves to remember that behind every atrocity in this wretched war, in conflicts around the world, is a human being.”
