Putin defends UN security council integrity

Kenya’s triumphant entry into the powerful UN Security Council as a
non-permanent member—the third time in the country’s history—has
coincided with growing calls for reforms and tension between member
states.

For instance, the 10-year bloody war in Syria which has left a trail
of devastation in the region saw US and Russia supporting rival
groups: while Washington wants President Bashar Hafez al-Assad out,
Moscow supports him.

The US and Russia sits in the UN Security Council as permanent members
with veto powers together with France, Britain and China. Russian
President Vladimir Putin has used its veto powers more than 10 times
to block the council’s resolutions against his ally—Assad.

In turn the US and its allies such as Britain are accusing Russia of
“misusing” its veto powers and therefore, putting the council’s
legitimacy at risk. But President Putin has always defended his
position saying he is defending the council’s integrity.

For a resolution to pass, nine of members have to vote for it while
all the five permanent members must not vote against it. There are ten
non-permanent members in the council with Africa represented by three
countries at a rotational arrangement.

Kenya will be represented in the council by Ambassador Lazarus Amayo
who is the country’s permanent representative to the New York based
United Nations. The term runs from 2021-2022.

In a long speech released last week to coincide with today’s national
holiday—to mark the 75th Anniversary of the Great Victory—President
Putin retraced the country’s history from June 22, 1941 when thousands
of German troops invaded it.

For my parents, the war meant the terrible ordeals of the Siege of
Leningrad where my two-year old brother Vitya died, said Putin. “It
was the place where my mother miraculously managed to survive and my
father, despite being exempt from active duty, volunteered to defend
his hometown,” he said.

“He made the same decision as millions of Soviet citizens. He fought
at the Nevsky Pyatachok bridgehead and was severely wounded,” he said,
adding: “And the more years pass, the more I feel the need to talk to
my parents and learn more about the war period of their lives.”

“But I no longer have the opportunity to do so. This is the reason why
I treasure in my heart the conversations I had with my father and
mother on this subject, as well as the little emotion they showed,” he
stated.

“People of my age and I believe it is important that our children,
grandchildren and great-grandchildren understand the torment and
hardships their ancestors had to endure. They need to understand how
their ancestors managed to persevere and win,” Putin said.

According to him, the UN Security Council continues to play a majority
in deflating tensions between countries something has helped avoid a
global war like World War 1 and World War 11 describing those pushing
for its dissolution as “irresponsible.”

Of course, we can see that the UN system currently experiences certain
tension in its work and is not as effective as it could be. But the UN
still performs its primary function, he said.

“The principles of the UN Security Council are a unique mechanism for
preventing a major war or a global conflict,” Putin, one of the most
powerful global figures said.

“The calls that have been made quite often in recent years to abolish
the power of veto, to deny special opportunities to permanent members
of the Security Council are actually irresponsible,” he sid.

“After all, if that happens, the United Nations would in essence
become the League of Nations – a meeting for empty talk without any
leverage on the world processes. How it ended is well known,” he
added.

Noting that the world is today going through turbulent times because
of a number of factors such as shifting global balance of power and
ever changing social, economic and technological situations, Putin
said that there is need to safeguard the council.

In the past epochs, shifts of such magnitude have almost never
happened without major military conflicts, he said.

It is a duty of ours – all those who take political responsibility and
primarily representatives of the victor powers in the Second World War
– to guarantee that this system is maintained and improved, he added.

He said US President Trump and his colleagues Xi Jinpin (China),
Emmanuel Macron (France), and Boris Johnson (UK) has all pledged to
support the Russian Initiative which seeks to bring together leaders
from the five nuclear states.

“We thank them for this and hope that such face-to-face meeting could
take place as soon as possible,” he said adding that his main agenda
is to “discuss steps to develop collective principles in world
affairs.”

To speak frankly about the issues of preserving peace, strengthening
global and regional security, strategic arms control, about joint
efforts in countering terrorism, extremism and other major challenges
and threats, he explained.

“A special item on the agenda of the meeting is the situation in the
global economy and above all, overcoming the economic crisis caused by
the coronavirus pandemic,” he said.

He said: “Our countries are taking unprecedented measures to protect
the health and lives of people and to support citizens who have found
themselves in difficult living situations.”

“Our ability to work together and in concert, as real partners, will
show how severe the impact of the pandemic will be, and how quickly
the global economy will emerge from the recession,” said Putin.

The agenda proposed by Russia for the upcoming summit of the Five is
extremely important and relevant both for our countries and for the
entire world. And we have specific ideas and initiatives on all the
items, he said.

He said that the summit will play an important role in finding common
answers to modern challenges and threats. However, a date for the
summit has not been set but Putin said “it will happen soon.”

“It will demonstrate a common commitment to the spirit of alliance, to
those high humanist ideals and values for which our fathers and
grandfathers fought shoulder to shoulder,” he added.