Criticism Of The UN Secretary-General's Statement On Refendum, Russia: Unauthorized And Double Standards

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. (Wikimedia Commons/IAEA Imagebank)

JAKARTA - Russia's diplomatic mission to the United Nations said the UN Secretary-General had no authority to make statements, assessing what was delivered as double standards.

Access to the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) and the People's Republic of Lugansk (LPR), as well as the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions to Russia have no legal force, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.

"Any decision to continue annexing the Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia regions in Ukraine will have no legal value and deserves to be condemned," Guterres told reporters.

"The UN group is clear. Every annexation of a country's territory by other countries caused by threats or the use of force is a violation of UN Charter Principles and international law," he explained.

"Russia Federation, as one of the five permanent members of the Security Council, shares a special responsibility for respecting the Charter. It cannot be reconciled with the framework of international law. It is against all that is meant by the international community. It ridicules the goals and principles of the United Nations. This is a dangerous escalation, has no place in the modern world. It doesn't have to be accepted," he explained.

Guterres said the UN position was on a firm referendum. "We are fully committed to Ukraine's sovereignty, unity, independence and territorial integrity, within its internationally recognized borders, in accordance with relevant UN resolutions."

"I would like to underline that what is called a'referendum' in occupied areas is carried out during active armed conflict, in areas under Russia's occupation, and outside of Ukraine's legal and constitutional framework. They cannot be called the original expression of the will of the people."

"Any Russian decision to move forward will further jeopardize the prospect of peace. It will prolong the dramatic impact on the global economy, especially developing countries and hinder our ability to provide life-saving assistance across Ukraine and its surroundings," Guterres said.

In response, the Russian Mission to the United Nations described it as a double standard example, highlighting the silence of the UN Secretary-General on the actions of the Kyiv government in Donbass after 2014, about the situation around Kosovo and stopping condemning the US and NATO occupations in parts of Syria.

"With this background, the direct attack by the Secretary-General of the United Nations on the basic right to self-determination disclosed by the residents of the DPR, LPR, Kherson, and Zaporizhia are other examples of double standards," the statement said in a diplomatic mission. Russia.

"We regret that instead of acting as in the United Nations Charter, the Secretary-General chose to play a role in influencing the position of UN Member states ahead of the initiation anticipated by Western countries," the statement continued.

Not only that, Russia's diplomatic mission to the United Nations also said Antonio Guterres had no authority to make statements on behalf of the organization as a whole, related to referendum.

"The administrative function does not give the Secretary-General the right to make political statements on behalf of the United Nations as a whole, let alone alone provide interpretations of the Charter norms and documents of the General Assembly," the mission said.

According to the mission, "if the UN charter is 'clear' for the Secretary-General, then he must know the contents of Article 97 of it, identify the Secretary-General as the Chief Executive of the Organization."

The statement said that the " nature and content" of the secretary-general's statement undoubtedly violated the United Nations Charter, establishing the secretary general and personnel of the Secretariat "should refrain from any action that might reflect their position, as international officials responsible only to the Organization."

"Regarding the situation around Ukraine, the UN Secretary-General has consistently shown the same selective approach as collective Western countries, literally putting themselves in line with them," Russian diplomats criticized.

It is known that referendum to be part of Russia is held in the DPR and LPR, as well as in the Zaporizhia and Kherson regions from September 23 to 27. The majority of their population chose to be part of Russia.