Statement by Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the UN Nr. Sergiy Kyslytsya at the UNSC meeting on implementation of the Minsk Agreements

Statement by Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the UN Nr. Sergiy Kyslytsya at the UNSC meeting on implementation of the Minsk Agreements

As delievered

«Distinguished members of the Security Council,

On this day, 7 years ago, the Ukrainian city of Debaltseve sustained a full-fledged offensive by the Russian regular troops and their proxies. Heavy artillery and rocket shellings did not spare neither Ukrainian military, nor civilians.

All this happened despite the disengagement line, agreed by Ukraine and Russia under the Minsk Memorandum of 19 September 2014 – the second document in the set of the Minsk Agreements – which clearly defined that Debaltseve is a government-controlled area.

This happened despite the Minsk Package of Measures was signed a week earlier and its first provision contained commitment to comprehensive ceasefire.

This is just one example of how Russia violated the agreements almost immediately after signing them.

So far disrespect to undertaken commitments remains the hallmark of Russia’s strategy. Only this morning the Ukrainian Stanytsia Luhanska village was shelled with heavy weapons from occupied territory of Donbas. Civilian infrastructure damaged, including kindergarten.

Upon the instruction of my Government, I have to bring to the attention of the Security Council another outrageous situation, that undermines the Minsk Agreements and the entire process of peaceful settlement.

Two days ago the Russian State Duma appealed to the Russian President to recognize the occupied parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine as so-called “Donetsk and Luhansk peoples’ republics”.

This decision runs counter the commitments, undertaken by Russia as a signatory of the Minsk Agreements. Therefore, I requested the Security Council in my letter to the Security Council dated 16 February 2022 to consider this situation today.

Our standpoint remains unchanged: Russia’s recognition of the so-called “Donetsk and Luhansk peoples’ republics” will be tantamount to its deliberate withdrawal from the Minsk Agreements. Such a move will cause a serious blow to the politico-diplomatic settlement that Ukraine and its partners have been actively engaged to promote.

Recognition of the so-called “republics” will have no legal implications. Russia will not succeed at masking the Russian occupation administrations in the temporarily occupied territories of Luhansk and Donetsk regions as “independent entities”, or to disguise its own involvement as a party to the armed conflict in Donbas.

Instead, if the Russian President endorses the ruling of the State Duma, it will have much broader, destructive consequences for the international rules-based order and the global security architecture. Therefore, Russia has a choice: to embark on the path of de-escalation and diplomatic dialogue or experience decisive consolidated response by the international community.

It is a matter of particular concern that the same pattern was implemented and the same language was used in 2008, when the appeal by the State Duma of the Russian Federation to then Russian President Medvedev “on the need to recognize the Republic of South Ossetia and the Republic of Abkhazia” preceded the presidential decree on such “recognition” adopted on 26 August 2008.

So just don’t call it a mere appeal of Duma. I thank the Secretary of State Mr. Blinken for his powerful statement of February 16 on the issue of the Duma’s decision, as well as I thank the Foreign Minister Le Drian of France for his clear statement, as well as I thank Minister Cleverly of the UK for his statement today, as well as I thank Norway, Ireland, Albania and many other partners and responsible members of international community for their statements on this issue. And I would like to ask of the Secretariat of the Security Council to make my letter as a part of the proceedings – letter dated February 16.

It is important as the soft and feeble reaction by the UN in 2008 resulted in lasting the occupation of parts of the Georgian territory. I will not quote what the Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said and what the PGA said as that moment. We hope that the UN learned lessons from occupation of Abkhazia and the South Ossetia and we all, both Member States and the Secretariat, will be more vocal in defending the UN Charter. I addressed my letter on this issue to the Secretary General and I wait for meaningful reply by the Secretary General to my letter.

We call on Russia to take a constructive stance towards achieving progress in the framework of the existing negotiation formats. Otherwise, Russia will bear full responsibility for ruining the Minsk Agreements and the process of peaceful settlement of the armed conflict.

The Minsk Agreements are the complex of three documents and we should approach its implementation from this standpoint, starting from the Minsk Protocol of 5 September 2014. Let me remind you that according to paragraph 4 of this document Ukraine and Russia agreed on establishment of security zones in the border areas of Ukraine and Russia with the OSCE permanent monitoring and verification on the border. Ukraine expects Russia to deliver on this agreed commitment which would become a major input into the resolution efforts.

It is more than urgent now as about 150 thousand Russian troops have been deployed in the vicinity of the Ukraine’s borders. We note the statements by the Russian officials on their withdrawal, although verification and credible proofs are required. Unusual military activities on Ukraine’s borders, that Russia denied to explain in violation of the Vienna Document Confidence and Security-Building Measures, have a detrimental economic and social impact on Ukraine already now, regardless of ultimate plans by Russia.

The military build-up on the ground has been coupled with a blockade by Russia of the large parts of the Black Sea under the pretext of naval exercises. This has made navigation and international shipping extremely complicated, causing serious challenges for the major Ukrainian ports.

All these actions fit into the concept of the hybrid war against Ukraine with disinformation and cyber-attacks as its other important components. For instance, the most recently Russia pulled another propaganda ace up its sleeve, blaming Ukraine for “genocide” in the occupied territories. These are fake and irresponsible allegations by Russia aimed at hiding its responsibility for the occupation of the Ukrainian territories and subsequent human rights violations there.

Excellencies,

Ukraine remains committed to peaceful resolution of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict by politico-diplomatic means. Ukraine wants peace, security and stability not only for itself, but also for the entire Europe. At the same time, I reiterate that in the event of Russia opting for escalation, Ukraine will defend itself.

We welcome all diplomatic and other efforts taken at different levels to prevent the worst-case scenario. We are grateful for support and solidarity with Ukraine, so explicitly demonstrated worldwide.

We reiterate the need to further explore all political means to ensure de-escalation. Reinvigorating the Normandy Format and the Trilateral Contact Group is one of the necessary steps. Both include Russia and Ukraine as parties to conflict and constitute the proper framework for their direct dialogue.

The dialogue that Russia still avoids and hides behind their puppet occupation administrations. As long as Russia makes pre-conditions about “direct dialogue” between Ukraine and Moscow’s proxies, which are effectively a non-starter, the progress on the implementation of the Minsk Agreements will remain elusive.

Hence, it was important that political advisers met in Paris and Berlin, despite many divergences on implementation the Minsk agreements persist. We are ready to resume the N4 talks in all formats, including at the level of the leaders. We regret that Russia remains unwilling to hold a N4 summit.

The last time our leaders met in Paris in December 2019. The decisions adopted then remain unimplemented by Russia despite Ukraine regularly put forward concrete initiatives on ceasefire, humanitarian demining, withdrawal of troops and hardware, mutual release of detained persons, opening new entry-exit points, ensuring unimpeded access of the OSCE SMM throughout the conflict-affected area as well as implementation of the political provisions of the Minsk Agreements.

On 22 December 2021, we managed to find a common understanding on resuming the ceasefire regime, initially launched in July 2020. We offered far-reaching compromises to strike the deal, but ceasefire violations by the Russian occupation forces have not yet halted.

Restrictions of the SMM freedom of movement continue to be a major impediment for the implementation in full of the SMM mandate. During the last meeting of the TCG on February 9, Chief Monitor Cevik provided statistical information confirming that 90 percent of restrictions of the freedom of movement of SMM patrols occur in the temporarily occupied territories of Donbas. We call on Russia to ensure unfettered access of the SMM throughout the entire territory under its effective control, in particular in the border areas. This is particularly important against the backdrop of the Russia’s decision not to extend the mandate of the OSCE Border Observer Mission at the Russian checkpoints “Gukovo” and “Donetsk”, shut down last September. In this regard we support the initiative by France and Germany to establish a coordination and verification mechanism for the OSCE SMM.

On the political track discussions on such issues as: (1) implementation of the so-called “Steinmeier formula”, (2) The special order of local self-government in certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, (3) “amnesty law”, (4) modalities of local elections – so far continue to be blocked by the Russian side.

The Russian representatives simply refuse to continue discussions on working proposals submitted by the Ukrainian delegation back in June 2020 relating to the special order of the local self-government in certain areas in Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine and other issues on the agenda of the Political Working Group.

According to ODIHR standards, resumption of control of the border should be a prerequisite for holding local elections in Donbas. Otherwise, it would be impossible to create the necessary security environment for holding the democratic elections in line with the OSCE standards.

Excellencies,

It remains up to Russia to take decisions that would lead to full implementation of the commitments it has undertaken under the Minsk agreements, signed by President Putin’s Ambassador to Ukraine Zurabov in blue ink, to de-occupation of the illegally occupied parts of Ukraine. Drawing lessons from the past, we urge Russia to abandon its long-lasting strategy on Ukraine, based on threat and use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of my country, and re-engage on what we all have committed to – fundamental principles of peaceful relations enshrined in the UN Charter.»

But before I end, let me address, Sergey Vasiliyevich, по русски:

Средства массовой информации распространили текст, который приписывается вашей коллеге по цеху, госпоже Захаровой.

Позвольте зацитировать: «С точки зрения международного права, геополитические преобразования 1991 года не привели к исчезновению СССР как субъекта международного права. …, государство под названием СССР не прекратило, а продолжило свою международную правосубъектность…».

Конец цитаты.

Каково оно, Сергей Васильевич, в кресле постоянного члена Совета Безопасности, Союза Советских Социалистических Республик? Ведь так указывает действующая редакция Статута ООН, что это место Советского Союза?

Когда я читаю подобные тексты, когда я слушаю товарищ Монтян, я хочу повторить те же самые слова, которые произнес на таком же точно заседании по вопросу исполнения Минских соглашений 18 февраля 2020 года.

Собственно говоря, это слова известного российского поэта Евтушенко 1962 года. Поэт Евтушенко сказал: «Пусть мне говорят - успокойся... Спокойным я быть не сумею. Покуда наследники Сталина живы ещё на земле, мне будет казаться, что Сталин - ещё в мавзолее".

Сергей Васильевич, на дворе 21 век. Давайте-ка вернёмся к Уставу ООН. Давайте-ка начнем его исполнять? Изменим статью 23, исполним статью 2, 4, 108.

Спасибо за внимание.