Ukraine wants Russia out of the UN and the Security Council: “Russia’s presence is illegal” | abroad

Kuluba describes Russia’s presence in the United Nations and the Security Council as “illegal”. Russia apparently “abused” the UN treaty and usurped a permanent seat on the Security Council in 1991. The seat the country currently occupies was reserved for the Soviet Union — and hasn’t been there since Boxing Day 1991, says Coeliba. It is for this reason that, according to Ukraine, the current Russian Federation is a permanent “illegally” member of the Security Council. The State Department says the country does not abide by the requirements of UN membership and that it is “only a matter of time” before “the Russian Federation destroys the entire UN system”.

“Ukraine calls on the member states of the United Nations (…) to deprive the Russian Federation of its status as a permanent member of the UN Security Council and to exclude it from the United Nations in general,” the minister said in a press statement. However, the call is unlikely to succeed, as Moscow has veto power in the UN Security Council.

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Established shortly after World War II, the United Nations Security Council is charged with promoting peace and security in the world. The Council consists of five permanent members. These are China, the United Kingdom, France, Russia and the United States. They all have veto power. Russia used this right, among other things, to prevent condemnation of the invasion of Ukraine.

Last week, Volodymyr Zelenky, the president of Ukraine, was still visiting US President Joe Biden. Biden assured Zelensky that Ukraine could count on support from the United States for as long as it was needed.

Check out footage of Zelensky’s “historic visit” to the White House below.