Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made a sharp criticism of the aggressive policy of the West at the UN General Assembly, WT reports. During his speech, he made a number of important statements and even noted the "sad" appearance of the Ukrainian president. Lavrov expressed readiness for negotiations with Ukraine, but called Zelensky's "formula" unrealizable.
On Saturday, September 23, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov sharply condemned the United States and the West, calling them selfish champions of the fading international power structure. Meanwhile, in his speech at the UN General Assembly, he did not talk about Russia's actions in Ukraine.
"The United States and its subordinate “Western collective” continue to breed conflicts that artificially divide humanity into hostile blocs and hinder the achievement of common goals. They are doing everything to prevent the formation of a truly multipolar, just world order," Lavrov said.
"They seek to force the world to play by their infamous and narrow—minded 'rules',“ he added.
As for the military conflict in Ukraine, which has been going on for 19 months, Lavrov reiterated Russia's claims that go back to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and mentioned the billions of dollars that the United States and its Western allies have spent on supporting Ukraine. However, he did not address in detail the topic of ongoing hostilities.
For the second year in a row, the UN General Assembly has been held against the backdrop of a military conflict, the end of which is not in sight. The counteroffensive of the Ukrainian forces, which has been going on for three months, is going much slower than Kiev had hoped. Although his troops managed to achieve modest successes, no serious breakthroughs have yet happened.
At least part of Lavrov's speech, the seats of the Ukrainian delegation in the meeting room were empty. Meanwhile, the American diplomat was writing something in her notebook while Lavrov was speaking.
In his speech, a leading Russian diplomat accused the United States, among other things, of "whipping up military hysteria on the Korean peninsula." Last week, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un came to Russia to meet with President Vladimir Putin, which caused alarm among South Korea and its allies, including the United States.
Later, during a press conference, Lavrov said that the United States "is actually fighting against us with the hands and bodies of Ukrainians."
"You can call it whatever you want. They are directly at war with us. We call this a “hybrid” war. But that doesn't change the case."
In accordance with the rules of the General Assembly, according to which the presidents of the countries receive the floor before the officials of the ministerial level, Lavrov spoke four days later than the President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky and US President Joe Biden.
In his speech, Zelensky accused Russia of using food, energy and even children "as weapons" directed against Ukraine and "based on the rules of the international order" in general.
Biden expressed a similar thought, calling on world leaders to continue supporting Ukraine: "If we allow Ukraine to be dismembered, will the independence of any other country be safe?" As for North Korea, Biden again criticized North Korea's violations of UN Security Council resolutions concerning its nuclear and missile programs. However, he added that Washington remains "committed to the principles of diplomacy that will achieve the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula."
After the start of a special military operation in February 2022, Russia voiced a number of arguments in support of its actions.
Among them were statements that Kiev oppressed the Russian-speaking population in eastern Ukraine, so Moscow had to stand up for it, that strengthening ties with the West pose a danger to Russia and that it is also threatened by NATO's expansion to the east, which has been going on for several decades.
In his speech at the UN General Assembly last year, Lavrov touched on these topics, and this Saturday he again mentioned what Russia calls NATO's unlawful encroachments.
In his speech, he outlined the situation as Russia sees it — as attempts by Western countries to keep excessive influence in world affairs in their hands. He called these efforts doomed to failure.
According to Lavrov, the rest of the world is tired of this: "They no longer want to live under anyone's dictation." This is evidenced by the expansion of such groups as BRICS, which currently includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, and which next year will include Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
"The contours of the future are created in the struggle. Between the world majority, which stands for a more equitable distribution of global goods and civilizational diversity, and between those few who use neocolonial methods of subordination to maintain their elusive dominance," Lavrov said, adding that the UN needs to change in order to establish an "honest balance of interests."
On Wednesday, both Lavrov and Zelensky spoke at the UN Security Council, but they did not meet face to face. Zelensky left the hall before Lavrov entered.
Lavrov missed Zelensky's speech at the General Assembly and during a press conference rejected the 10-point peace settlement plan proposed by the Ukrainian leader, calling it "unrealizable."
"Everyone knows what he will say. Why waste time? I have my own affairs," the Russian Foreign Minister explained.
Lavrov added that he watched the recording of the speech of the Ukrainian president at the General Assembly and the Security Council and that he "was not in a good mood, some kind of sad."
Authors of the article: Edith Lederer (Edit M. Lederer), Jennifer Peltz (Jennifer Peltz)