Statement by Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the UN Mr. Sergiy Kyslytsya at the UNSC meeting on further violations by Russia of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine
Distinguished members of the Security Council, Under-Secretary,
It is with unease that I will now remove my mask and it is not because of the COVID virus. We are all vaccinated, there are vaccines for COVID. It is because of the virus that has so far no vaccine. The virus that hit the UN and the virus that is spread by the Kremlin.
The delegation of Ukraine has requested this urgent meeting to draw the attention of the Security Council to the illegal and illegitimate decision by the President of the Russian Federation to recognize the occupied parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine as so-called “Donetsk and Luhansk peoples’ republics”.
Today the entire membership of the UN is under attack. Under attack by the country that occupied the membership of the Security Council in 1991 bypassing the UN Charter, the country that occupied the parts of the territory of Georgia in 2008, the country that occupied the parts of Ukraine in 2014.
As stated by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy following the urgent meeting of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine:
The internationally recognized borders of Ukraine have been and will remain unchangeable regardless of any statements and actions by the Russian Federation.
Ukraine unequivocally qualifies the recent actions by the Russian Federation as violation of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. The political leadership of the Russian Federation shall bear full responsibility for the outcomes of the decisions taken.
Recognition of the occupied parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine may be considered as unilateral withdrawal by Russia from the Minsk Agreements and well as its disregard of the decisions taken in the framework of the Normandy Four. This step undermines peaceful efforts and ruins the existing negotiating frameworks.
By the decisions, adopted today, and those, that may be adopted tomorrow, Russia legalizes the presence of its troops, which have actually been in the occupied areas of Donbas since 2014. A country that has fueled the war for eight years is not able to maintain peace, as it claims.
What will happen next?
We want peace and we are consistent in our actions.
Today, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine has sent a request on the basis of the Budapest Memorandum to the guarantors of security of Ukraine, demanding immediate consultations.
The meeting of the UN Security Council and a special meeting of the OSCE have been initiated.
We insist on the full-fledged operations of the OSCE SMM to prevent provocations and further escalation.
An emergency summit of Normandy Four has been requested.
We expect from our partners clear and efficient steps of support.
It is critical to see now - who is our true friend and partner, who is on the side of the UN Charter, and who will continue to deter Russia by words only.
We are committed to a political-diplomatic settlement and do not succumb to provocations.
In accordance with Article 51 of the UN Charter, Ukraine has the inherent right to individual and collective self-defense.
We are committed to a peaceful and diplomatic path. And we will stay firmly on it.
We are on our own land. We are not afraid of anything or anyone. We owe nothing to anyone. And we will not give away anything to anyone.
There should be no doubts whatsoever. Because it is not February 2014, it is February 2022.
Another country. Another army. One goal is peace. Peace in Ukraine. Peace in Europe. Global peace.
Excellencies,
“We must do all we can to make sure that the problem of Donbas is resolved through implementation of the Minsk Agreements.” That was said here in the Security Council Chamber just four days ago. Said by the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister in the chair of the President of the Council, with a reference to President Putin.
President Putin, who has taken a decision, that we discuss today as a threat to the rules-based order, to the UN Charter, in particular its Article 2, as well as to international peace and security.
Peace and security that the Council has been conferred a primary responsibility to maintain under the Article 24 of the UN Charter. And in accordance of the Article 39 the Security Council shall make recommendations, or decide what measures shall be taken to maintain or restore international peace and security.
The delegation of Ukraine requests the Security Council members to exercise the above duties.
We invite the Russian Federation to re-read again and again carefully today’s statement where the Secretary-General considered the decision of the Russian Federation be a violation of territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine and inconsistent with the principles of the UN Charter. I thank the Secretary-General for this powerful statement.
In conclusion I would like to reiterate that it remains up to Russia to abandon its long-lasting strategy on Ukraine, based on threat and use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of my country, and re-engage on what we all have committed to – fundamental principles of peaceful relations enshrined in the UN Charter.
We demand from Russia to cancel the decision on recognition and return to the table of negotiations.
We condemn the order to deploy additional Russian occupation troops in the territories of Ukraine. We demand immediate and complete verifiable withdrawal of the occupation troops.
Distinguished Members of the Security Council,
The UN is sick. That’s a matter of fact. It’s been hit by the virus spread by the Kremlin. Will it succumb to the virus, it is in the hands of the membership. Today the Kremlin copy-pasted word by word the decree on Georgia of 2008. Word by word. Copy pasted. No creativity whatsoever. The copying machine in the Kremlin works very well. Who is the next among the members of the UN?
The question is open.
Thank you for your attention.