The government of Jair Bolsonaro is trying to extinguish a resolution that will be voted on at the UN this week and withdraw direct accusations of crimes that may have been committed by Russia in Ukraine. Itamaraty even suggested removing the phrase “aggression against Ukraine” from the draft resolution supported by Europeans and Western countries.
This Thursday, the UN Human Rights Council meets urgently to deal with the situation in Ukraine. But on Wednesday, behind-the-scenes negotiations began to agree on a resolution that would be put to a vote.
At a meeting in Geneva this morning, the Brazilian delegation made proposals to remove references from the text that, according to foreign diplomats, could endanger Russia.
Before commenting on each paragraph of the draft resolution, the Brazilian delegation stated that it did not want to see a text that made a “prejudice” about the situation in Ukraine and insisted that Brazil advocate independent investigations into this matter. crisis in parents. In laying out Brazil’s position, Itamaraty also noted that it would be important not to allow the Council to become the scene of a biased debate, defending only one side of the conflict.
Among the arguments that Brazil often uses to justify its position, the delegation cites the need to preserve the multilateral system and dialogue capacity so that a peaceful resolution of the war can be achieved.
During the meeting, the delegations started to discuss paragraph by paragraph, while the Ministry of Foreign Affairs detailed the changes it wanted to see in the text.
In one of the paragraphs, Brazil asked for the following sentence to be rewritten:
“We express deep concern at the alarming number of civilian casualties caused by aggression against Ukraine.”
Itamaraty wants the term “aggression against Ukraine” to be eliminated and replaced by only the word “conflict”. Among foreign diplomats, the proposal was welcomed as an effort to minimize pressure on Russian actions.
In another passage, Brazil insists that efforts should “only” refer to the need to seek peaceful ways to deal with conflict. Currently, both Europeans and Americans are expanding their approval of financial packages to arm Ukraine.
The Brazilian government would like to add the word “alleged” abuse in the next paragraph, which “condemns human rights violations and abuses”. This gesture was also interpreted as an attempt to avoid the prejudices of the Russians without waiting for the results of the investigation.
Quotations made in areas under the control of Russian troops will also be vetoed.
Even in a quote about the war’s impact on the world food supply, Brazil has called for the elimination of all parts.
The government, for example, wants the reference to the fact that some of the world’s food insecurity occurs “in light of the obstacles to Ukraine’s agricultural exports as a result of the blockade of sea ports and the destruction of associated critical infrastructure”. Theft of grain from the territory of Ukraine under the control of the Russian armed forces in the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions”.
Foreign diplomacy has once again interpreted Brazil’s offer as an effort not to put the blame on Russia before the investigations are concluded.
The government even questions the word proliferation in an article denouncing the use of disinformation.
Many of the Brazilian proposals met with resistance among Ukraine’s allies, who wanted a floor at the meeting and kept the parts Brazil wanted to cut.
The negotiation process will continue until tomorrow and the draft resolution will go to vote only on Thursday afternoon. Brazil’s hope is that some of their proposals will be considered.
Balance
In the past weeks, Itamaraty has taken a critical stance against the different resolutions that Europe has presented at various international organisations. Brazil’s argument is that Russia’s “diplomatic cancellation” threatens to deepen the crisis and radicalize positions. China, India and other countries, as well as Brazil, oppose the exclusion of Russians from the G20 and did not vote to suspend the Kremlin from the Human Rights Council.
Bolsonaro also caused embarrassment when he visited Vladimir Putin days before the war began and the Russian president’s refusal to directly condemn his actions.
One of the arguments used by Brazil is that investigations should be conducted to determine who is responsible for crimes committed in Ukraine. Using precisely this argument, Itamaraty did not even sign the proposal to hold an emergency meeting at the UN.
But for Europeans, awaiting the final results of the commission of inquiry may mean suspending the pressure on Russia for months. Today the commission is not even fully operational.
Meanwhile, UN monitors documented violations of international humanitarian and human rights law that took place in the country. The organization says many of these charges relate to violations that could amount to war crimes.
“The high number of civilian casualties and the extent of destruction and damage to civilian objects strongly indicate a violation of the principles governing the conduct of hostilities, namely the prohibition of indiscriminate attacks, proportionality and discrimination, including safeguards.” in this statement. week.
Matilda Bogner, head of the UN monitoring mission in the country, presented a list of crimes and human rights abuses Tuesday after visiting 14 cities abandoned by Russian troops.
According to him, in addition to more than 300 murders in the city of Bucha and northern Kiev, at least 204 cases of enforced disappearance can be recorded, mostly by Russian forces.
“These were places occupied by the Russians. These are illegal executions like extrajudicial executions,” he said. According to him, people were killed while crossing the street or in cars. Gunmen in the buildings were still shooting to send a message to the public to stay inside.
“What we have gives the first picture of what’s going on and the concerns in Ukraine. It will take time to understand the true extent of the violations,” said Bogner. said.
He also states that his team estimated “thousands of dead on Maripoul.” Overall, the UN cites more than 3,000 civilian deaths across Ukraine. But Bogner insists that this number is only a confirmed portion of the crimes. “The total number will be thousands more than we have,” he admitted.
source: Noticias
