US And UK Demand Russia Expelled From UN Human Rights Council Over Bucha Atrocities

Illustration of the United Nations Human Rights Council. (Wikimedia Commons/UNCTAD)

JAKARTA - Britain and the United States on Monday stepped up pressure on Russia over alleged atrocities during its invasion of Ukraine, calling for Moscow to be removed from the United Nations Human Rights Council.

Speaking in Romania, Washington's envoy to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield said the United States would seek Russia's suspension from its seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council amid growing signs of war crimes in Ukraine.

"Russia's participation in the Human Rights Council is a joke," said Thomas-Greenfield in Bucharest, quoted by The National News April 5.

"And it's wrong, which is why we believe it's time the UN General Assembly voted to remove it."

Meanwhile, British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss was quick to back the move, saying Russia could not remain a member of the UN Human Rights Council, after the discovery of mass graves and the heinous massacre in Bucha, a Kyiv suburb.

Russia has faced global outrage over alleged killings of civilians in northern Ukraine, where a mass grave and tied-up bodies shot at close range were found in Bucha, which was retaken from Russian troops over the weekend.

Yesterday, US President Joe Biden called Russian President Vladimir Putin a war criminal and called for a war crimes trial.

"You may remember I was criticized for calling Putin a war criminal. Actually, we saw that happening in Bucha, this guarantees him, he is a war criminal," said President Biden.

The US is seeking a vote on Russia's suspension at the 193-member UN General Assembly this week. This is because a two-thirds majority is needed to suspend a country because it continues to commit gross and systematic violations of human rights.

Previously, the UN General Assembly had twice voted to condemn Russia for its aggression in Ukraine.

Some 140 anti-Moscow votes in the two polls exceeded the two-thirds threshold, but it remains unclear whether UN members will support Russia's expulsion from the Human Rights Council.

"My message to the 140 countries who are bravely standing together is this: the picture of Bucha and the devastation across Ukraine requires us to match our words with actions," Thomas-Greenfield said.

Separately, Moscow denies attacking civilians in a military operation it says is necessary to prevent the NATO military alliance from expanding eastward. Moscow denies any violence against civilians as alleged, saying the so-called atrocities were engineered.

Russia's Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva Gennady Gatilov said the US initiative was unlikely to succeed. He said Washington was "exploiting the Ukraine crisis for its own benefit" and to isolate Russia, according to Reuters.

Moscow has experienced some resistance at the United Nations since it invaded neighboring Ukraine on February 24. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described it as "morally unacceptable" and called for an independent investigation into the deaths in Bucha.

The UN Human Rights Council has condemned the reported rights abuses by Russian troops and launched an investigation to hold perpetrators accountable. The United Nations International Court of Justice in The Hague has ordered Russia to halt the invasion, saying it has no justification.

Meanwhile, Russia and the four other permanent members of the UN Security Council, the UK, France, China, and the US, all currently have seats on the 47-member human rights council. The US rejoined the chamber this year.

Foreign Minister Truss said he urged allies to go further in tackling Russia's invasion of Ukraine, saying the money was still flowing from the West to Vladimir Putin's 'war machine'.

Together with Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba in Warsaw, he said: "It is the responsibility of the UK and our allies to increase our support for our brave Ukrainian friends."

"That means more weapons and more sanctions. Putin must lose in Ukraine. This weekend the G7 foreign ministers and NATO foreign ministers will meet. We need to announce a new wave of tough sanctions," he said.