UN Security Council meets to discuss Russian aggression toward Ukraine

A meeting of the United Nations Security Council was
held on Jan. 31 upon the request of the United States. The meeting focused on
Russian aggression toward Ukraine. Under-Secretary-General for Political and
Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo emphasized that “there is no alternative
to diplomacy,” news.un.org reported.

US ambassador to the United Nations Linda
Thomas-Greenfield called the Russian buildup is “the largest mobilization of
troops in Europe in decades,” and that, “”If Russia further invades
Ukraine, none of us will be able to say we didn’t see it coming.”

Russian ambassador Vasily Nebenzia stated that, “We
just don’t understand what we are discussing here today and why we are indeed
here”.

Ukrainian Permanent Representative Sergiy Kyslytsya,
along with stating that the need for a diplomatic solution was greater than
ever, also updated the UN Security Council on Ukrainian casualties along the
line of contact in Donbas.

James Hydzik: The
security council was largely against Russia in this meeting, with the Norwegian
ambassador, Mona Juul, admonishing Russia about how it had often spoken about
respecting national borders, and that it is expected to do so as well. Russia can
block decisions by the security council, but it cannot on its own prevent these
meetings from happening, and each one is likely to be a greater diplomatic
defeat than the last.