Shillong, April 2: Ukraine has urged the members of United Nations Security Council to oppose Russia’s assumption of the presidency on Saturday despite the country’s leader being charged with war crimes.
There has been an outrage in Ukraine, where President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has referred to it as an illogical and destructive action.
It indicates that a country whose leader is wanted internationally for alleged war crimes is in charge of the Security Council.
On a rotating basis, each of the 15 council members has the presidency for one month. Russia last held the presidency in February 2022, the month it began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine, stated in a daily video address, “Unfortunately, we… have some obviously stupid and terrible news,” adding that a five-month-old infant was murdered by Russian shelling on Friday.
He said, “And at the same time, Russia is chairing the UN Security Council. It’s hard to imagine anything that proves more the total bankruptcy of such institutions”.
The Russian presidency has been dubbed “the worst April Fool’s joke ever” and a “stark warning that something is wrong with the way international security architecture is functioning,” according to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.
The arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin was issued last month by the International Criminal Court, a non-UN body.
Notwithstanding Ukraine’s complaints, the US claimed it was powerless to prevent Russia, a permanent council member, from taking the helm.
On Thursday, the United States asked Russia to “act itself professionally” when it takes on the position and claimed there was no way to prevent Moscow from doing so.
The United Kingdom, United States, France, and China are the council’s other permanent members.
