As an emergency U.N. Security Council meeting, it was intended to discourage Russia from sending troops into Ukraine. The message was not delivered, but it became irrelevant.
While diplomats at U.N. headquarters were pleading for Russia to back down — “Give Peace a Chance,” Secretary-General Antonio Guterres implored — Russian president Vladimir Putin announced a military operation to protect civilians in Ukraine.
Putin warned that interference with Russia’s operation could lead to “consequences” they have not seen before.
Russia’s rotating presidency in the council gathered Wednesday night after Russia claimed that rebels in Ukraine had requested military assistance from Moscow. About a half an hour later, fears that Russia was setting the stage for war grew.
Sergiy Kyslytsya, Ukrainian Ambassador, stated to the council that it was too late to talk about de-escalation. “I appeal to you all to do everything in your power to end the war.”
In an unusual exchange, Kyslytsya challenged Russia’s counterpart to state that they weren’t bombing or shelling Ukraine right now.
“You have a phone. Kyslytsya stated that you can call officials in Moscow.
Vassily Nebenzia, Russian Ambassador to Russia, replied: “I have already spoken all I know at that point.”
He said that he did not plan to wake Russia’s foreign minister and that the current situation was not a war, but a “specially military operation.”
Kyslytsya rejected this description as it was outside the meeting. She called it “lunatic semantics.”
Members of the council were delivering speeches that were immediately outdated at the second emergency meeting on Ukraine this week. Some members responded with a second round rushed remarks.
U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said.
She said that a draft resolution would circulate to the council on Thursday.
A resolution would declare Russia’s violation of the U.N. Charter, international laws, and a 2015 council resolution regarding Ukraine. This was according to a diplomat from Europe, who spoke under anonymity as the discussions were confidential. According to the diplomat, the resolution would call on Russia to immediately comply with international law.
Diplomats from dozens countries took to the U.N. General Assembly floor earlier Wednesday to condemn Russia’s actions towards Ukraine and call for dialogue. Russia and its ally Syria, however, defended Moscow’s actions.
Nebenzia described his country as responding in kind to the suffering of the beleaguered people living in the areas that have been declared an echo of the narrative broadcast to Russians at Home. Russia claims that Ukraine is engaged in violence and oppression. Ukraine denies this.
He stated Wednesday that Ukraine’s actions are the root of the crisis surrounding Ukraine.
Dmytro Kuleba, the Ukrainian foreign minister, urged countries to use strong economic sanctions and strong messages to force Russia to withdraw. He warned that a lackluster response could put at risk not only Ukraine’s security but also the concept of international law.
The 193-member General Assembly, which met a day after Western countries and other countries imposed new sanctions against Russia, didn’t take any collective actions. The General Assembly, which includes nearly 70 countries, did not take any collective action.
Russia took Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula in 2014. Since then, pro-Russian rebels have been fighting Ukrainian forces east of Donetsk/Luhansk. The conflict has claimed the lives of more than 14,000 people.
After weeks of tension, as Moscow gathered more than 150,000 troops at Ukraine’s borders, Putin on Monday recognized both regions’ independence and sent Russian forces there for “peacekeeping.”
Guterres disagreed, claiming that troops entered another country without consent.
As explosions were heard in Kyiv, and other cities throughout Ukraine, Wednesday night, Guterres’ plea to “give peace another chance” had turned into a more desperate plea.
In remarks to reporters, the secretary-general stated that President Putin should bring his troops home to Russia in the name and honor of humanity. “In the name and honor of humanity, don’t allow Europe to begin what could be the most destructive war since the dawn of this century.”
