Russia clashes with US and Ukraine supporters, ruling out any peace plan backed by Kyiv and the West

UNITED NATIONS — Russia’s foreign minister clashed with supporters of the United States and Ukraine at a UN meeting on Monday, where Moscow ruled out any peace plan backed by Kiev and the West, and China warned that further global chaos could have consequences have for the slowing global economy.

Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s top diplomat, claimed that Ukrainian forces have been “a complete failure” on the battlefield and are “incapable” of defeating or weakening Russia.

He told the UN Security Council that Moscow is always ready to negotiate peace, but he claimed that peace plans presented by Ukraine and its Western “masters” are “only used as a cover to continue the war and continue to get money from the western taxpayers.’

“All these formulas are a road to nowhere, and the sooner Washington, London, Paris and Brussels realize this, the better for Ukraine and the West,” he said, warning that their “crusade against Russia has already created new, clear reputations created. and existential risks.”

US Deputy Ambassador Robert Wood dismissed Lavrov’s claims as “simply blatant disinformation” and countered that it was the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022 that started the war, and that it was the “determined efforts of President Vladimir Putin is towards the destruction of Ukraine.” Ukraine and the subjugation of its people, which prolongs it.”

“Russia’s imperialist plans are clear,” and “for Russia, anything short of capitulation – total capitulation by Ukraine is the only solution, and that is simply not acceptable to the international community,” Wood said. He stressed that the war could end tomorrow if Moscow withdrew hundreds of thousands of troops to the internationally recognized territory of Ukraine.

Russia convened the council meeting to once again sharply criticize Western military aid to Ukraine. Just before it started, diplomats from more than 40 countries surrounded Ukraine’s U.N. Ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya, who read out a joint statement underscoring Russia’s “hypocrisy” in criticizing legal arms transfers to help Ukraine defend itself.

Ukrainian supporters once again called Monday’s meeting a Russian attempt “to distract from the war of aggression,” and they condemned military support for Moscow – drones from Iran and ballistic missiles from North Korea – in violation of UN sanctions, as well as military equipment from Belarus.

The council heard many calls for more peace efforts, and there was growing concern from Russia’s ally China about the growing threat to global security from the ongoing war in Ukraine, while Israel and Hamas are at post-war war in Gaza. the surprise attacks by a militant group in southern Israel on October 7.

“We must make every effort to stem the spillover of the (Ukrainian) crisis at a time when the Palestinian-Israeli conflict continues and some hotspot problems are at risk of flaring up,” Chinese UN Ambassador Zhang said Jun. “The world cannot afford to see a further spread of geopolitical clashes while the global economy slows down.”

Zhang told the council that “the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries must be respected,” which Ukraine has insisted on and violated by Russia by annexing four Ukrainian regions. But the Chinese ambassador criticized Ukraine for wanting to join NATO and warned Kiev, without naming Russia, that it would increase Moscow’s security problems.

Zhang urged a resumption of direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine as soon as possible. He made no mention of the peace plan China issued in February 2023 calling for a ceasefire, negotiations and an end to sanctions on Russia, but he did focus on the war’s disruption of the global economy.

“The negative consequences of the Ukraine crisis and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict have added snow to the frigid global economy,” Zhang said. “Countries with significant influence should… refrain from politicizing, instrumentalizing or weaponizing the global economy, and instead work together to maintain global food, energy and financial security, as well as the stability and smooth functioning of industrial and supply chains .”

China was the third chairman of the 15-member council, and Lavrov left immediately after Zhang spoke, giving his seat to a deputy. Lavrov did not hear Wood, but he did hear Maltese U.N. Ambassador Vanessa Frazier, who reiterated the U.S. call for Russia to withdraw its troops and accused Moscow of violating its duty to maintain international peace and security, the country’s main mission the Security Council.

“Today’s meeting is yet another attempt to justify the unjustified and provide a narrative in which the victim is the aggressor and the aggressor is the victim,” said Frazier, who blamed the killings and injuries of 10,200 Ukrainian civilians, including 575 children. of more than 10,200 Ukrainian citizens. According to the UN human rights office, 19,300 others have been involved in Russian attacks since the start of the war.