The Secretary General of the United Nations Organization (UN), António Guterres, warned Russia on Thursday that the annexation of Ukrainian territories “will have no legal value and deserves to be condemned”, stressing that “it cannot be reconciled with the international legal”. “. “.
In brief statements to the press at the UN headquarters in New York, Guterres spoke out against Moscow’s intention to start an annexation process, stressing that it is a clear violation of United Nations principles.
“The Kremlin has announced that it will take place tomorrow [sexta-feira] a ceremony in Moscow that will launch a process of annexation of the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia. In this moment of danger, I must emphasize my duty as Secretary-General to uphold the Charter of the United Nations,” he said.
“The UN Charter is clear. Any annexation of the territory of a State by another State as a result of the threat or use of force is a violation of the principles of the UN Charter and international law”, the UN leader stressed.
Guterres also drew attention to the fact that Russia, as one of the five permanent members of the Security Council, has a particular responsibility to respect the principles of the United Nations Charter.
“Any decision to proceed with the annexation of the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia will have no legal force and deserves to be condemned. It cannot be reconciled with the international legal framework. It opposes everything that the international community should defend”, defended the former Portuguese prime minister.
“It is a lack of respect for the purposes and principles of the United Nations. It is a dangerous climb. It has no place in the modern world. It should not be accepted,” he said.
António Guterres stressed that the UN’s position is unequivocal: “We are fully committed to the sovereignty, unity, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine, within its internationally recognized borders, in accordance with the relevant United Nations resolutions.” .
In addition, he stressed that the so-called ‘referendums’ in the occupied regions were held during the active armed conflict, in areas under Russian occupation and outside the legal and constitutional framework of Ukraine, so “they cannot be qualified as a genuine expression of the popular will “.
Any decision by Russia to move forward will further jeopardize the prospects for peace, the UN leader said, adding that it would prolong the dramatic shocks to the global economy, especially in developing countries, and undermine the Organization’s ability to provide aid to Ukraine and others. needy states.
“It is time to take a step back. Now, more than ever, we must work together to end this senseless and devastating war and uphold the UN Charter and international law,” she concluded.
The Kremlin announced today that the four Ukrainian regions that held referendums on joining Russia will join the country on Friday.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov also added that Russian President Vladimir Putin will take part in a ceremony in which the regions will officially become Russian.
Peskov told reporters that the leaders of the four regions, where the referendums ended on Tuesday, will sign the treaties to join Russia during Friday’s ceremony in the Kremlin.
Official annexation was already expected after the vote in the Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine, whose inhabitants, Moscow claimed, overwhelmingly supported Russia’s formal annexation of these territories.
The United States and its Western allies have vehemently condemned the referendums, calling them a farce and vowing never to acknowledge their results.
Ukraine also called the referendums illegitimate and said it had every right to take back the territories.
In 2014, Russia had already used the result of a referendum held under military occupation to legitimize the annexation of Ukraine’s Black Sea peninsula of Crimea.
Source: TSF
