Remarks at Russia-convened UN Security Council briefing on “Russophobia”
John Kelly
Political Advisor
New-York, New-York
March 14, 2023
AS DELIVERED
Thank you Mr President.
We listened carefully to the speakers and would like to thank Dr. Snyder for his thoughtful presentation today.
The United States welcomes serious discussions about the harmful effects of hate speech and harmful rhetoric. We regret that this meeting is a missed opportunity. The Russian delegation convened today’s meeting by claiming that “Russophobia” is – and I quote – “one of the most cruel and repulsive aspects of the Ukraine crisis. Should we take this statement seriously while Russian missiles rain down on Ukrainian cities and kill civilians? Since Russian forces have committed crimes against humanity, including the systematic rape, murder and torture of civilians?
There is a better word for such a statement in English, which includes Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov’s assertion at a G20 meeting earlier this month that this war was somehow started against Russia and not the other way around. That word is gaslighting.
For the past year, the world has endured a parade of Russian excuses and absurd justifications for the war of their choosing against Ukraine. We have heard that Russia claims that it is not the aggressor. That she is trying to stop a “genocide” in eastern Ukraine. That she must “denazify” the Ukrainian government and fight against drug addicts and satanists. No matter what today’s confusing excuse is, it cannot hide the fact that Russia is not the victim it claims to be. The evidence can be clearly seen in Bakhmut, Kharkiv, Mariupol, Bucha and many other Ukrainian cities.
If the Russian delegation was serious about highlighting the most gruesome and repulsive aspects of their brutal invasion of a sovereign UN member state, they should convene a meeting to discuss the many war crimes, crimes against humanity and other abuses committed by their armed forces. She should explain to this council why her armed forces have deported hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians – including children – to Russia. It was meant to explain why its forces tortured civilians in custody by beatings, electrocuting and mock executions. And it should explain why its forces raped civilians and executed execution-style killings of Ukrainian men, women and children.
Russia has made a number of propaganda attempts to justify its war to this council over the past year, including some truly ludicrous conspiracy theories. Any apology is designed to obscure their true goal: to wipe the sovereign, independent state of Ukraine off the map and forcibly subdue its people. Putin has said so, denying that Ukraine is a state and demanding the return of so-called “lost territories”.
Ukraine’s self-defense is an appropriate and necessary response to Russia’s vicious, destabilizing and dangerous invasion. It is a necessary response to an illegal war of aggression that violates the UN Charter and has caused untold human suffering and abuse in Ukraine.
This is not the first and will not be the last time that Russia has attempted to abuse its seat on the Council to spread disinformation and hatred. Similar to the G20 meeting earlier this month, it doesn’t convince anyone. No excuse will hide the fact that Russia is trying to destroy its neighbor and fulfill its imperial expansionist ambitions.
The people of Ukraine, a sovereign, independent state that is part of this UN community, will continue in valiant defense of their country. The United States will stand by them for as long as it takes.
Thank you Mr President.
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