January 22, 2024
I wish to thank Mr. Ebo for his briefing.
Soon, it will be two years since Russia began feeding us with all sorts of pretexts to justify its war of aggression against Ukraine. But its web of lies cannot stand up to the facts: Russia can choose, every day since 24th February 2022, to cease its aggression, at no risk whatsoever to its own security. Support being given to Ukraine is no more responsible than Ukraine for the continuation of the conflict.
Our support is provided in accordance with Article 51 of the United Nations Charter. It allows Ukraine to defend its territory and people. The anti-aircraft defense capabilities help Ukraine to protect itself against Russian strikes, which target civilians and civilian infrastructure. By training the Ukrainian armed forces, we are helping them to repel the attacks of Russian forces.
This support does not aid Ukraine alone : the struggle waged by the Ukrainians is also a struggle for our Charter and our collective security. It’s a struggle to ensure that every member state’s territorial integrity is respected, without fear of being attacked by a neighbor.
Russia, for its part, continues to turn a deaf ear to appeals and to wage its illegal war. It does not listen to the International Court of Justice, whose decision on March 16, 2022 ordered Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukrainian territory, nor to the United Nations General Assembly, which has affirmed and reaffirmed its commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity on four occasions, each time by an overwhelming majority.
To wage its illegal war, Russia, a permanent member of the Council, is acquiring drones from Iran and ballistic missiles from North Korea, in violation of Council resolutions. In doing so, Russia is undermining our non-proliferation regimes.
Russia claims to be concerned with achieving a peaceful settlement to the conflict. In reality, only Ukraine has launched a credible process to work towards a just and lasting peace, based on the principles of the UN Charter, involving a growing number of countries. We support Ukraine and will continue to do so.