Russian FM Storms Out of UN Security Council Debate on Ukraine
HAVANA TIMES – At the United Nations, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stormed out of a U.N. Security Council meeting Thursday, after accusing the U.S. and its NATO allies of becoming direct parties to the conflict in Ukraine.
Sergey Lavrov: “We have no confidence in the work of this body. For the past eight months we were waiting for steps to be taken against impunity in Ukraine, and we don’t expect anything more from this institution or a whole range of other international institutions.”
Sergey Lavrov arrived 90 minutes late to the Security Council chambers and then abandoned the debate after delivering his remarks. That prompted Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba to remark, “Russian diplomats flee almost as aptly as Russian soldiers.”
Dmytro Kuleba: “Today we are mostly focusing on crimes committed by Russian soldiers in Ukraine. But if anyone thinks they are the only one ready to kill, torture, rape, cut off genitals, they are wrong. Russian diplomats are directly complicit, because their lies incite these crimes and cover them up.”
Earlier today, a United Nations commission reported it has evidence of war crimes committed by Russia in Ukraine, including widespread torture, sexual violence and attacks on civilian populations.