Joint Press Stakeout at the UN on 22 January 2024

Joint Press Stakeout

Delivered by the Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations

H.E. Sergiy Kyslytsya

(22 January 2024, New York)

On behalf of the governments of Albania, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Marshall Islands, Monaco, Montenegro, the Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Moldova, Republic of Korea, Romania, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and the European Union

Good morning. I would like to read out a statement on behalf of the governments of Ukraine, Albania, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Marshall Islands, Monaco, Montenegro, the Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Moldova, Republic of Korea, Romania, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and the European Union.

We underscore the hypocrisy of the Russian Federation calling yet another UN Security Council meeting to criticize lawful arms transfers to Ukraine that are done in support of Ukraine’s inherent right of self-defense, as reflected in Article 51 of the UN Charter.

This meeting today is another attempt by the Russian Federation to distract from its war of aggression against Ukraine and its intensified campaign of systematic air strikes killing civilians and destroying critical infrastructure.

We reiterate our resolute condemnation of the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine, which constitutes a manifest violation of the UN Charter. We reaffirm our unwavering support for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders.

While Ukraine is trying to defend its civilian population, the Russian Federation is killing the Ukrainian people with arms procured from other countries.

We condemn continued military support for Russia’s war of aggression, including by Iran, Belarus and the DPRK, and we continue to urge all countries not to provide weapons and military equipment, including missiles and drones or other support for Russia’s war of aggression.

This includes Russia’s and the DPRK’s violations of the UN arms embargo on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), adopted through successive Security Council resolutions. We urge the DPRK and Russia to abide by these Security Council resolutions, and remain concerned that the Russian Federation’s use of ballistic missiles from the DPRK provides the DPRK valuable insights into the technical capabilities of its weapons.

Additionally, there is clear evidence of Iran’s unlawful transfers of armed Iranian UAVs to the Russian Federation when restrictions prohibiting such transfers under UN Security Council resolution 2231 were in place. The Russian Federation has used these UAVs repeatedly in striking critical infrastructure, including grain silos, energy facilities, and residential buildings in Ukraine.

The Russian Federation’s actions undermine the credibility of Security Council resolutions, undermine the global non-proliferation regime, exacerbate regional tensions, and endanger us all.

We call on all UN Member States, including the Russian Federation, to fully implement relevant Security Council resolutions.

We must ensure accountability for the serious crimes under international law committed on the territory of Ukraine, and ensure justice for all victims and the prevention of future crimes.

We call on the Russian Federation to stop its war of aggression and withdraw immediately its troops from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally-recognized borders.