Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the UN Andrey Melnyk called on the Russian military to deprive the organization of its right to participate in peacekeeping and police missions. He said that Russian armed forces should not take part in operations under the UN flag after reports of sexual violence committed on the territory of Ukraine.
Andrey Melnik, speaking at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on June 8, put forward a proposal to ban the participation of the Russian military in international missions. According to him, the military units included in the special list for cases of sexual violence related to armed conflicts by the UN Secretary General should not be given the right to act on behalf of the organization. must.
The Ukrainian diplomat also criticized the opinion of Vasiliy Nebenzya, the permanent representative of Russia at the UN, that this report is directed against Russia and aims to discredit it.
In a report published by the UN at the end of May, the Russian army was put on a special “blacklist” for the first time due to cases of rape and other sexual crimes committed against prisoners of war and civilians during armed conflicts.
In his speech, Melnik also raised the issue of Russia’s participation in the UN, noting that Moscow may consider leaving the UN if it regularly rejects the decisions of the General Assembly of the organization and the conclusions of its institutions.
“Maybe it’s time to say goodbye and leave the UN,” said the Ukrainian diplomat.
He also noted that Russia has not yet taken practical steps to end the war. Melnik said that Ukraine offered to organize a meeting of the leaders of the two countries in neutral territory in order to resolve the conflict politically, but this initiative was not supported by Moscow.
An emergency meeting of the UN Security Council was called at the initiative of Ukraine. According to Kyiv, at least 22 people were killed in the cities of Kyiv and Dnipro, and more than 100 people were injured across the country as a result of mass attacks carried out by Russian troops on June 2. Most of the victims were from Kyiv region.
The Ukrainian side assesses these events as one of the biggest attacks in recent times.
