Both the UN Secretary General, António Guterres, and the Government of the United States joined the rejection of Russia’s plan to annex Ukraine’s territories on Friday, after referendums considered “false”.
“The Kremlin’s fake referendums are a futile effort to mask what amounts to a new attempt to seize Ukraine’s land”, said the Secretary of State, Antony Blinken. “The results were orchestrated in Moscow and do not reflect the will of the people of Ukraine.”
He added that the United States will not recognize the legitimacy of those referendums that the Government of Vladimir Putin intends to justify the annexation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson for .
Meanwhile, the secretary Guterres considered that Russia’s decision was violating the General Charter of the United Nations.
“In this moment of danger, I must underline my duty as Secretary General to defend the Charter of the @UN ”, he shared on Twitter, although he gave a statement on the matter. “The Charter is clear. Any annexation of the territory of a State by another State, as a result of the threat or use of force, is a violation of the Principles of the Charter and international law“.
In this moment of peril, I must underscore my duty as Secretary-General to uphold the @UN Charter.
The Charter is clear.
Any annexation of a State’s territory by another State resulting from the threat or use of force is a violation of the Principles of the Charter & int’l law.
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) September 29,
Secretary Blinken insisted that Russia’s plan was a “show” that violated international law .
“It is an affront to the principles of international peace and security”, he indicated while accusing that the voters would have done it under threat. “Russia has forced large parts of the population to flee from the areas it took over and has forced Ukrainian citizens who stayed behind to vote at gunpoint, fearing for their safety and that of their loved ones.”
Blinken indicated that he will continue to support the government of Volodimir Zelensky in its defense against the invasion.
“The United States and our allies and partners will continue to help Ukraine in its fight to defend its territory against Russian aggression,” he said. “As President [Joe] Biden has said, we will never recognize these areas as part of any country other than Ukraine, and we will support Ukraine for as long as it takes.”
Nuclear conflict?
The Biden Administration has expressed its concern that Russia uses nuclear weapons in its invasion of Ukraine.
A recent Politico report indicated that there is intense work being done to get the governments of India and China, two of Putin’s allies, to agree to call on him to stop his nuclear intentions, since that would mean being isolated from the international community.
“You could let Mr. Putin know what a disastrously bad idea any use of nuclear weapons would be,” said one official.
On Tuesday, the National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan, met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of India, the Dr. S. Ja ishankar, with whom he discussed the Russian invasion of Ukraine, reported the White House.
The Defense Department has been on alert about the possible use of nuclear weapons and trying to understand what President Biden means by “forceful” action toward Russia.
“It is the closest we have come to the use of nuclear weapons in more than 54 years,” a source who works at the Strategic Command based in Omaha, Nebraska, told Newsweek.