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- Window for dialogue: Sergey Lavrov summed up the results of his stay at the UN General Assembly
Window for dialogue: Sergey Lavrov summed up the results of his stay at the UN General Assembly
Dialogue should not be abandoned, no matter what the relations between the countries may be, and the United States understands this, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at a press conference following his visit to the 80th anniversary session of the UN General Assembly. During his speech at the UN, the minister spoke about the attempts of "palace coups" in the organization, recalled the "blooming gardens" of the West and the "jungles" of the rest of the world. Other theses of this day in New York can be found in the Izvestia article.
Israel is burying the UN with its actions in the Middle East
The 80th anniversary session of the UN General Assembly turned out to be controversial. This is typical for a site where sometimes irreconcilable neighbors gather.
It was also full of all sorts of incidents: idle prompters, escalators stopping suddenly. The Russian delegation was not spared either. For example, when introducing Sergey Lavrov before his speech, the President of the General Assembly and former German Foreign Minister Annalena Burbock either turned off the microphone herself at the words "Russian Federation", or someone else did it. If this is really an intentional provocation, it looks pretty shallow. There is no doubt that after so many years of the Russian minister's work in this post, someone might not have learned who Sergey Lavrov is and who he represents. Annalena Burbok herself, for example, is not in danger of such fame.
One of the most pressing topics of all the days of the high week was the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, as well as Israeli attacks on neighboring countries. Numerous protests and skirmishes on the streets of New York persistently remind of armed conflicts overseas.
A damaged building after an Israeli attack on Hamas leaders in Doha, Qatar
The illegal use of force by Israel against the Palestinians and aggressive actions against Iran, Qatar, Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq threaten to blow up the entire Middle East, the Russian minister noted.
"Russia condemned the attack by Hamas militants on Israeli civilians on October 7, 2023. However, there is no justification for the brutal killings of Palestinian civilians, as well as terrorist attacks. There is no justification for the collective punishment of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where Palestinian children are being bombed and starved, hospitals and schools are being destroyed, and hundreds of thousands of people are being made homeless. There is no justification for plans to annex the West Bank. In fact, we are dealing with an attempt of a kind of coup d'etat in order to bury the UN decision on the creation of a Palestinian state," Sergey Lavrov said.
He also recalled the recent recognition of Palestine by Western countries. That is, decades later, after the global majority, including Russia, did so without waiting for the massacres and kidnappings of 2023.
"Widespread gross violations of the principle of sovereign equality of states undermine the very faith in justice, lead to crises and conflicts. The root of the problems is the incessant attempts to divide the world into friends and foes, into democracies and autocracies, into a blooming garden and a jungle, into those who are at the table and who are on the menu. The chosen ones, who are allowed to do everything, and the rest, who for some reason are obliged to serve the interests of the "golden billion," Sergey Lavrov said during his speech.
The minister mentioned the rumors circulating in the media about the new US plan for Gaza. One of its points is the decision to create some kind of reservations in the enclave. There were also proposals to appoint former British Prime Minister Tony Blair to the post of "governor of Gaza" (it seems that not only Nazism, but also the aspirations of colonialism are being revived). "I'm only mentioning rumors," Sergey Lavrov said. As in all previous conflicts, there is a deadline here. The decision is "very close," as Donald Trump put it.
Russia is ready to talk to Ukraine
To educate Western colleagues and the press, who were naturally interested in the topic of Ukraine at the press conference, the Russian minister spoke about an important point: "Ukraine is the only country in the world that has legally banned the use of the native language of almost half of its population. Arabic is not banned in Israel, and Hebrew is not banned in Arab countries and Iran. And Russian is banned in Ukraine." Sergey Lavrov recalled Article 1 of the UN Charter, which states the need for "respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction between race, gender, language and religion."
There is little chance that those present in the hall, both the General Assembly Hall and the representatives of the Western media gathered at the press conference, thought about this.
But for added clarity, on the eve of the press conference, the Russian delegation distributed materials to the foreign press, including statements by representatives of Kiev and Western politicians inciting hatred. There was also a GFCN brochure, which provides expert analysis of the fakes of the Kiev regime and the West.
Among other things, it mentions Ukraine's statements about disdain for the Russian-speaking population of its country. The West is silent about this. He is also silent about the targeted killings of Russian journalists and politicians. For example, Izvestia News Center lost three correspondents in its area, and several of our colleagues were injured. Other Russian media are also suffering losses.
In their recent reports, UNESCO decided to simply ignore these facts.
Moscow has always been and remains open to dialogue on eliminating the root causes of the conflict, and, consequently, on ending hostilities. And the rights of Russian-speaking people living in Ukraine remain one of the main priorities for the Russian Federation, Sergey Lavrov stressed.
Speaking about Ukraine, he again, as he did a few years ago, recalled the tragedy in Bucha, where there is still no evidence that Russia committed crimes: "For almost all three years I appealed to the Secretary General, we asked for one thing — to publish the names of those whose bodies were shown in the BBC story." (it was with this story that the accusations of Russia in the brutal murders in Bucha began).
As it turned out, Moscow received the answer only this summer. It says that it is not possible to announce the names of the victims. Or even impractical.
Lavrov also scolded the press, which did not listen to his requests to investigate the "tragedy in Bucha."
Russia adequately perceives the ambivalence of the US words
Of course, the inconsistency of Donald Trump's statements in recent days did not go unnoticed at the press conference. Answering a question, Sergey Lavrov called the Trump administration's flexible policy — "everyone has their own style."
The main thing that the United States understands is that it is wrong when states refuse to talk in principle.
"In public diplomacy, a lot is said from the specifics of the moment. There are many points, and the specifics are changing," the diplomat noted.
At the same time, the minister clearly noted that if someone decides to shoot down any aircraft within the borders of our airspace, this someone will regret it very much. As for any UAVs that violate the airspace of another state, it has the right to do whatever is necessary with it. Against the background of the incidents in Poland and Estonia, this sounded like a clear signal to those who wanted to provoke Moscow by taking advantage of the moment.
Lavrov announced a special meeting of the UN Security Council in October.
He also touched upon the topic of UN reform. They've been talking about her for a long time, but they haven't started. Moscow supports changes in the organization's structure. Moreover, as the chair country, Russia will hold a special meeting of the Security Council on this topic on October 24 (the Day of the creation of the United Nations).
"Attempts at a "palace coup" in the secretariat and its privatization by a small group of countries should not be allowed. The composition of the secretariat should reflect new realities and ensure fair representation of the world's majority countries," Sergey Lavrov added.
Speaking about the United Nations, the Russian minister also mentioned the crisis in compliance with the organization's charters. Thus, the features of Nazism are reappearing in the West, and the militarists are raising their heads more seriously. And some European leaders even talk about World War III as a real scenario.
"Russia is not agitating for revolution against anyone. Our country has suffered from revolutions more than others. We simply urge the Member States and the leadership of the secretariat to strictly follow all the principles of the UN Charter without double standards. Only then will the legacy of the founding fathers of the United Nations not be wasted," Sergey Lavrov concluded his speech.
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