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Tag: Russia-Ukraine crisis

  • Russia-Ukraine crisis: UN Security Council moves to broker peace deal

    Russia-Ukraine crisis: UN Security Council moves to broker peace deal

    On 24 February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine in a major escalation of the Russia-Ukrainian War, which had started in 2014. AYOOLUWA AYOBAMI reviews the voting pattern which seeks an end to the conflict.

    The unexpected siding of the United States with Russia at the United Nations (UN) on two key votes, as regards the Russia-Ukraine war, reflects substantial changes in the United States foreign policy, especially during the present administration of President Donald Trump.

    This shift is marked by the U.S. rejecting a UN General Assembly resolution that condemned Russia’s military actions in Ukraine, a position backed by European nations.

    Instead, the U.S. proposed and supported a new resolution in the UN Security Council that called for an end to the conflict without tagging Russia as the enemy or recognising Ukraine’s sovereignty.

    This new development points to a growing conflict between the U.S. and its supposed European allies, as the Trump-led government prays closer relationship with Moscow, distancing itself from Kyiv. The U.S. has engaged in direct negotiations with Russia to resolve the conflict, moving away from its previous position of firmly backing Ukraine.

    The United States (US) found itself siding with Russia on two votes at the United Nations, marking the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

    This shift reflects a change in the US foreign policy under the administration of President Donald Trump. The Trump-led government has seen a departure from previous American stances on the war.

    Before now, the US had rejected a European-drafted resolution that condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and supported Ukraine’s territorial integrity. The resolution called for the condemnation of Russia’s actions and reaffirmed Ukraine’s sovereignty.

    However, the Donald Trump-led administration’s hesitance to challenge Russia directly led to the US first voting against the resolution, now taking sides with countries such as Russia, North Korea, and Belarus. This was a significant departure from the US’s usual backing for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

    The first voting occurred at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.

    The resolution, which urged the condemnation of Russia’s invasion and maintained Ukraine’s sovereignty, was supported by 93 countries, except the US which voted against it.

    The second vote came into place during the UN Security Council, where the US brought in its resolution calling for an abrupt end to the war.

    The resolution was however notably refrained from criticising Russia.

    This resolution reiterated a desire to end the war without apportioning blame, a position that raised concerns about tacit approval of Russia’s actions.

    This vote shows the Trump government’s desire to embrace a more neutral, non-confrontational stance, focusing on de-escalating the war rather than holding Russia accountable.

    This resolution passed with the backing of 10 members. However, major US allies, including the UK, France, Denmark, Greece, and Slovenia, did not vote following their attempts to amend the text which were rejected.

    These votes came coincidentally at a time when there were high-profile diplomatic visits, including French President Emmanuel Macron’s meeting with Trump at the White House and upcoming discussions between British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Donald Trump.

    These meetings follow deepening tensions over the war in Ukraine and the transatlantic alliance, which the Trump-led government has been alleged of undermining through its favouritism towards Moscow.

    During a rare moment of disagreement at the UNGA, the United States decided to push a more limited resolution that mourned the loss of life in the Russia-Ukraine war and prayed for its swift resolution.

    European diplomats, on the other hand, however, brought a more detailed resolution, condemning Russia for its aggression and reinforcing Ukraine’s sovereignty.

    While the US and Russia voted together against the European resolution, Ukraine’s Deputy Foreign Minister Mariana Betsa reiterated that the world must not give reward to Russia’s aggression.

    Ukrainian officials and lawmakers from America expressed concern over the US’s position on the issue.

    Republican Senator John Curtis expressed his discomfort, stating he was “deeply troubled” by the vote, which placed the US together with North Korea and Russia.

    In a post on X, he said: “These are not our friends. This posture is a dramatic shift from American ideals of freedom and democracy.”

    In the Security Council, the US resolution, which was largely free of criticism toward Russia, passed but faced obstruction from several European allies.

    US Acting Ambassador to the UN, Dorothy Camille Shea, supported the resolution, labelling it as a “simple historic statement” focused on looking forward and ending the war.

    The US is usually not on opposite sides with its perceived European allies.

    The US’s stance at the UN in these major votes reflects wider shifts in its foreign policy, with the Trump-led administration distancing itself from traditional alliances in support of a more unilateral approach.

    The votes, while not legally binding, pointed to the tensions in the international community and emphasised the challenges of addressing the Russia-Ukraine war in a more diplomatic framework. 

  • EU extends Russian sanction

    European Union foreign ministers on Monday extended economic sanctions on Russia until January 31, keeping up pressure on Moscow to help resolve the Ukraine conflict.

    The ministers meeting in Luxembourg approved a six-month extension of the sanctions, which were “introduced in response to Russia’s destabilising role in eastern Ukraine,” an EU statement said.

    The ministers ratified a decision taken by officials last week, the BBC reports.

    Kremlin Spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said last week that Russia’s reaction to the EU decision would be based on the “principle of reciprocity,” suggesting that it would extend counter-sanctions that include a ban on Western food imports.

    The sanctions on Russia’s energy, defence and financial sectors, originally imposed in July 2014 for one year, were the EU’s toughest response to Moscow’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea region and what the EU said is Russia’s support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.

    EU leaders agreed in March that economic sanctions on Russia would stay until the Minsk ceasefire deal in Ukraine is fully implemented, but delayed taking a decision to formally extend the sanctions.

  • Rockets kill 10 in Ukraine port

    At least 10 people have been killed in a series of rocket attacks by pro-Russian rebels in Ukraine’s government-held port of Mariupol, police said.

    The Grad rockets hit a market in a residential area in the east of the city, the police chief said.

    A spokesman for the rebels denied that they had any involvement in the attack, calling it “blatant misinformation.”

    More than 5,000 people have died in fighting in the east since April, the BBC reports.

    The rebels have seized a large swathe of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. More than a million people have been displaced.

    The main pro-Russian rebel leader in eastern Ukraine, Alexander Zakharchenko, said on Friday that his troops were on the offensive and that he did not want truce talks with Kiev.

    A ceasefire agreed in September but never fully took hold. Many hoped that the lower level of hostilities it introduced would last, but the BBC says that the fighting is beginning to approach what was seen last summer.

    Mariupol has a population of 500,000 and is in a highly strategic position, sitting between rebel-held eastern areas and Crimea, which was annexed by Russia last March.

    The city saw heavy fighting in August.

     

  • Putin orders Ukraine border pullout

    Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has ordered troops near Ukraine’s border to withdraw, the Kremlin says.

    Units in the Rostov, Belgorod and Bryansk regions should return to their permanent bases, a statement said.

    Russia has made similar statements in the past, only for NATO to report no change.

    The BBC says the removal of some 40,000 Russian troops near the Ukrainian border could help de-escalate the Ukraine crisis.

    The apparent build-up of Russian forces in the region has ratcheted up diplomatic tensions in recent weeks.

    “In connection with the completion of the planned spring phase of military training… at ranges in Rostov, Belgorod and Bryansk regions, Putin ordered the defence minister to withdraw the troops that took part in the exercises,” the Kremlin statement provided to Russian news agencies said.

    Tensions between Russia and the West rose after the overthrow of pro-Kremlin Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych in February, following months of street protests.

    Russia’s subsequent annexation of Crimea triggered a crisis in relations.

  • Ukraine PM blames Odessa police

    Ukraine’s Prime Minister has blamed the country’s security services for failing to stop violence in the southern city of Odessa that left more than 40 people dead.
    Arseniy Yatsenyuk told the BBC there would be “full, comprehensive and independent investigation.”
    Most of the victims were pro-Russian separatists who died in a fire after barricading themselves in a building.
    The PM’s comments came as Ukrainian troops surrounded the pro-Russian stronghold of Sloviansk in the east.
    Mr. Yatsenyuk said of the Odessa violence: “I personally blame the security service and law enforcement office for doing nothing to stop this crackdown.”
    He added: “These security forces are inefficient and they violated the law.”
    He said the police chief of the Odessa region had been removed and that the prosecutor’s office had started an investigation.
    “The prosecutor’s office is to investigate everyone – starting with the chief of police, his deputies and every single police officer.”
    Some 42 people died in Odessa on Friday, most of them in the fire at the Trade Unions House, where separatist protesters had barricaded themselves following running battles with pro-Kiev activists.

     

  • Ukraine pilot dies in anti-rebel operation

    Pro-Russian rebels have shot down two of Ukraine’s army helicopters during an “anti-terror” operation in the eastern city of Sloviansk, Kiev says.
    Ukraine’s military said a pilot and serviceman were killed and nine rebel checkpoints seized.
    However, separatists at three Sloviansk checkpoints told the BBC they were still in control there.
    Russia said Kiev’s actions “killed the last hope” for a deal agreed last month in Geneva aimed at defusing the crisis.
    On Thursday, Russia’s foreign ministry warned that any assaults by Ukraine’s troops in the region would have “catastrophic consequences”, triggering fears of an invasion by Moscow.
    Sloviansk is a stronghold for pro-Russian separatists who are exerting increasing control in the region.
    In a statement on Friday, Ukrainian Interior Minister, Arsen Avakov, said the “active phase” of the operation began at 04:30 local time (02:30 GMT).
    He said interior troops and the National Guard were involved in the operation in the Sloviansk-Kramatorsk region.
    “The terrorists opened fire with heavy weapons against Ukrainian special units.
    “A real battle with professional mercenaries is going on,” Mr. Avakov said, adding that the separatists were using the tactics of hiding behind civilians in residential buildings.
    Russia’s state-run Rossiya 24 TV channel said the city was being “stormed.”

  • Russia destabilizing Ukraine – US

    United States Secretary of State, John Kerry, has accused Russia of “distraction, deception and destabilisation” in eastern Ukraine.

    In a strongly worded statement, he called on Moscow to help defuse the crisis there or face further sanctions.

    Earlier, Russia called on the US to make Kiev stop raids on pro-Moscow separatists in the east.

    The BBC reports that Russia ordered new military exercises on its border following the raids, drawing condemnation from Ukraine.

    Mr. Kerry was speaking amid an increasing war of words between the US and Russia over events in eastern Ukraine.

    Pro-Russian separatists are occupying key buildings in a dozen eastern Ukrainian towns, defying the central government.

    On Thursday the Ukrainian government said that it had retaken control of the city hall in the south-eastern city of Mariupol, but BBC journalists at the scene found no evidence of Ukrainian security services having entered the building.

    Mr. Kerry praised the interim authorities in Kiev, saying they had honoured the agreement struck in Geneva on April 17 to de-escalate the crisis.

    But he said Russia had “put its faith in distraction, deception and destabilization.”

    “Not a single Russian official has… called on the separatists to support the Geneva agreement, to support the stand-down, to give up their weapons and get out of the Ukrainian buildings,” he said.

     

     

  • US threatens more sanctions for Russia

    US threatens more sanctions for Russia

    The United States has warned Russia to tone down its aggressive rhetoric on Ukraine, or face further sanctions, the BBC reports.

    US Secretary of State John Kerry told his Russian counterpart over the phone that Moscow must call for pro-Russian gunmen to lay down their weapons.

    Kiev and the West say Moscow commands the gunmen – claims denied by Russia.

    The Ukrainian authorities have re-launched an anti-terror operation to take back several towns in the east overrun by pro-Russian militants.

    Acting President Olexander Turchynov said he had ordered the operation to restart after two men – including local politician Vladimir Rybak – were found dead after being “brutally tortured.”

    “The terrorists who effectively took the whole Donetsk region hostage have now gone too far,” Mr. Turchynov said.

    Kiev’s military operation to push gunmen out of public buildings began on April 16 but was suspended over the Easter period.