Im Saal des UN-Sicherheitsrats am East River gibt es inzwischen eine ebenso traurige wie zynische Routine, wenn sich das wichtigste Gremium der Vereinten Nationen mit dem russischen Angriffskrieg gegen die Ukraine befasst. Wassilij Nebensja, der russische UN-Botschafter, hält sich ganz an die orthodoxe Linie seines Außenministers Sergej Lawrows, der es diesmal vorzog, nicht in New York zu erscheinen.
Stoisch trug Nebensja am späten Dienstagnachmittag die Moskauer Lesart der „Spezialoperation“ vor. Er begann – ganz so wie es Lawrow in früheren Jahren gemacht hatte – tief in der Geschichte, beim Minsker Abkommen nämlich, gegen das Kiew verstoßen habe. Dann behauptete er, die ukrainischen Streitkräfte stünden kurz vor dem Zusammenbruch. Und er endete schließlich unfreiwillig komisch, als er Wolodymyr Selenskyj als „Neonazi“ verspottete und Kiew eine „Ein-Mann-Diktatur“ nannte. Der glatzköpfige Vertreter Moskaus verzog dabei keine Miene.
Auf dem Platz der Ukraine, die von Slowenien, das derzeit den Vorsitz im Sicherheitsrat innehat, eingeladen worden waren, an der Sitzung teilzunehmen, blickte der Vertreter Kiews während Nebensjas Ausführungen demonstrativ gelangweilt auf sein Mobiltelefon. Selenskyj hatte längst den Saal verlassen.
Selenskyj weiß das Recht hinter sich
Der ukrainische Präsident, der, wie üblich, in olivgrün erschienen war, hatte eine Rede gehalten, die man als Vorwort zu seinem „Siegesplan“ verstehen konnte, den er am Donnerstag dem amerikanischen Präsidenten Joe Biden in Washington vorlegen will. Russland begehe ein internationales Verbrechen, sagte er. „Deshalb kann dieser Krieg nicht einfach verschwinden. Deshalb kann dieser Krieg nicht durch Gespräche beruhigt werden.“ Es müsse gehandelt werden. Von der ersten Sekunde dieses Krieges an habe Moskau Dinge getan, die mit der UN-Charta nicht gerechtfertigt werden könnten. Er fügte hinzu: „Russland kann nur zum Frieden gezwungen werden, und genau das ist nötig.“ Er sei „allen Nationen dankbar, die wirklich auf eine Weise helfen, die das Leben unserer Menschen rettet“.
While the Ukrainian president was speaking, Nebenzya demonstratively leafed through his documents or played with his cell phone. Recently, Zelensky said that he could not say with 100 percent certainty that his plan would stop Putin, but that it would make Ukraine stronger and make the Russian ruler think about ending the war. Western diplomats are therefore quite certain that with his plan, the president will reinforce his demand to be allowed to use long-range, western-made weapons deep inside Russian territory.
Chinese triad to bind
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi first repeated Beijing’s well-known position and called on the Security Council to work harder towards peace negotiations. He then added a triad that should bind Kiev as much as Moscow: the most urgent priority is to adhere to three principles: no expansion of the battlefield, no escalation of fighting through the use of weapons of mass destruction and no provocation by any of the parties involved.
The first point may have referred primarily to Zelensky’s Kursk offensive in Russia, but the second point referred to Putin’s recurring nuclear threats, which have not gone down well with President Xi Jinping.
Wang then emphasized his country’s neutrality. “China did not cause the crisis in Ukraine and we are not part of it.” He also said: “We will continue to talk to all relevant parties, including Russia and Ukraine.” The more weapons are sent to the battlefields, the harder it is to achieve the goal of a ceasefire, said Wang. Finally, he noted: Anyone who blames China for the Ukraine issue or even attacks it is acting irresponsibly.
This of course applied to the United States. American Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirmed shortly afterwards that China, a permanent member of the Security Council, is the leading supplier of machine parts and microelectronics to Moscow. Russia uses these imports to repair its weapons and ramp up its war machine. However, he did not accuse Beijing of directly supplying weapons, which the White House had long ago described as a red line that would result in sanctions.
Blinken warns against unholy alliances
Then Blinken spoke about North Korea and Iran: “The more Russia depends on their support, the more Iran and North Korea get in return.” And: “The more Putin supports Pyongyang and Tehran, the more he exacerbates the threats to peace and security – not just in Europe, but in the Indo-Pacific, the Middle East, and around the world.” He continued: “The fastest way forward is to stop those who enable Putin’s aggression.”
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, who had also been invited to the meeting as a guest by Slovenia, once again outlined the conditions under which negotiations could take place: “Peace means that Ukraine’s existence as a free and independent country is guaranteed. It means security guarantees.” She continued: “When we talk about peace, we mean that it must be a just and lasting peace. When we talk about peace, it means for Ukraine that it can be sure that the end of the fighting will not mean another round of preparations in Russia.” This applies to Ukraine as well as Moldova and Poland.
The new British Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, found clear words. He addressed Putin directly and said: “Your invasion serves your own interests, yours alone, to expand your mafia state into a mafia empire, an empire built on corruption, robbing the Russian people just as it did Ukraine.”
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