Zelenskiy says UN accountability must be inevitable

by Michelle Nichols and Humeyra Cotton and Doina Chiacu

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told the United Nations Security Council that “responsibility must be inevitable” for Russia as it accuses Russian troops of committing “the most heinous war crimes” since WWII.

Zelenskiy showed a short video of burned, bloody and mutilated corpses, including children, in Irpin, Dymerka, Mariupol and Bucha.

He questioned the value of the 15-member UN Security Council, which could not take any steps against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, as Moscow has veto power with the US, France, Britain and China.

“We are facing a state that has turned its veto in the UN Security Council into a right to die (why),” Zelenskiy said in a live video speech calling for reform of the world body. Said. “Russia wants to turn Ukraine into silent slaves.”

Russia says it is conducting a “special military operation” aimed at destroying Ukraine’s military infrastructure and “removing the minority” and denies attacking civilians. Ukraine says it was occupied without provocation.

Vassily Nebenzia, Russia’s ambassador to the UN, told the council: “Once again, we heard a huge amount of lies about the Russian soldiers and army.”

About 11 million Ukrainians – more than a quarter of the population – have fled their homes, the UN said. More than 4 million of these people left Ukraine.

UN aid chief Martin Griffiths said at least 1,430 civilians were killed, including more than 121 children. “We know this is probably a serious understatement,” he added.

“We still have a long way to go,” said Griffiths, who wants a humanitarian ceasefire in Ukraine, after a “candid” meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow on Monday.

“Dangerous conditions hinder our efforts to get civilians or their access to us. Civilians must be allowed to move to safer areas without fear of attack,” Griffiths told the UN Security Council on Tuesday. said. He said he hopes to travel to Ukraine on Wednesday to meet with Ukrainian officials.

Rosemary DiCarlo, UN chief for political affairs, said the United Nations had “received credible allegations that Russian forces had used cluster munitions in residential areas at least 24 times.” He said that allegations that Ukrainian forces used such weapons are also being investigated.

“Allegations of sexual violence related to the conflict by Russian forces have also emerged. This includes gang rape and rape in front of children,” he said. “There are also reports of sexual violence by Ukrainian forces and civil defense militias.”

He said the UN Human Rights Watch Mission in Ukraine is trying to verify all the allegations.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned the Security Council that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “in its nature, intensity and consequences” is one of the greatest challenges for the international order of all time.

Guterres said war is putting more pressure on the developing world, with more than 1.2 billion people particularly vulnerable to rising food, energy and fertilizer costs.

“We’re already seeing some countries go from fragility to crisis and symptoms of serious social unrest,” he said.