Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov: ‘What’s particularly cynical is the position of states pumping Ukraine full of weapons, training their soldiers
Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov faced off against western powers at the UN Security Council on Thursday, defending the invasion of Ukraine after his US counterpart said Moscow had “shredded” international norms.
The comments came as Russia’s president Vladimir Putin escalated the conflict this week, pledging to mobilize hundreds of thousands of troops and threatening the use of nuclear weapons — triggering alarm around the world.
“Every council member should send a clear message that these reckless nuclear threats must stop immediately,” said US secretary of state Antony Blinken during a meeting of the 15-member council, which had been assembled to address atrocities taking place in Ukraine.
Lavrov, who arrived late and left after addressing the council for about 20 minutes, denied Russia had committed war crimes and blamed Ukraine and its western backers for the conflict.
“What’s particularly cynical is the position of states pumping Ukraine full of weapons, training their soldiers,” he said, arguing that the west was doing so to “drag out the fighting as long as possible in spite of the victims in order to wear down and weaken Russia”.
“The decision to conduct a special military operation was inevitable,” Lavrov added, using Moscow’s preferred terminology to refer to the war.
Blinken and other officials said the onus was on Russia to stop the war. “One man chose this war. And one man can end it,” Blinken said. “Because if Russia stops fighting, the war ends. If Ukraine stops fighting, Ukraine ends.”
Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba, who spoke after Lavrov had left, said Russian falsehoods fuelled Ukrainian suffering.
“Russian diplomats are directly complicit because their lies incite these crimes and cover them up,” Kuleba said.
The council met a day after Putin ordered the mobilization of army reservists to support Moscow’s ailing campaign and warned that he would use Russia’s nuclear arsenal if its “territorial integrity” was “threatened”.
Moscow is also planning heavily stage-managed votes in four occupied regions of Ukraine on the question of joining Russia, which the US and other powers have described as a sham.
Western countries have vowed not to recognize Moscow’s efforts to annex occupied Ukrainian territory and have warned that Russia will face consequences if it does so.
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