The United States has made its case at the U.N. Security Council for why Russia should face further censure and isolation over the Ukraine invasion. It comes the day after Ukraine’s president laid out a forceful case against Russia’s invasion at the United Nations. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to Security Council members, detailing allegations of war crimes and other atrocities that Russia has committed against Ukraine. He urged them to “send a clear message” for Russia to stop its nuclear threats. Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, fired right back minutes later. he called the claims unfair and Ukraine to blame.
Video speeches by Zelenskyy in an olive green T-shirt have become almost commonplace. But this speech was one of the most keenly anticipated at the U.N. General Assembly, where the war has dominated over conflicts in other regions.
On Thursday, Israel’s prime minister, Yair Lapid, delivered a speech focused on the Palestinians and included a call for the establishment of a Palestinian state. “An agreement with the Palestinians, based on two states for two peoples, is the right thing for Israel’s security, for Israel’s economy and for the future of our children,” Lapid said. The speech, coming ahead of Nov. 1 elections, appeared to be part of an effort by Lapid to portray himself — both to voters and global leaders — as a statesman and moderate alternative to his main rival, hardline former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. But it was short on details, and there is virtually no chance Lapid, who has long supported a two-state solution, will get to push forward with his vision. Israel’s parliament is dominated by parties that oppose Palestinian independence, and opinion polls forecast a similar result after the upcoming elections. The Palestinians seek the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip — territories captured by Israel in 1967 — for an independent state, a position that enjoys wide international support. While Lapid and dozens of other world leaders sought airtime for issues plaguing their own nations — including climate change, rising food costs, human rights and vaccine inequity — Ukraine remained at the center of the U.N. General Assembly, popping up in speeches by leaders from all over the world decrying Russia's invasion of a sovereign country. “It’s an attack on this very institution where we find ourselves today,” said Moldovan President President Maia Sandu, whose country borders Ukraine.“This war is about extinguishing Ukraine’s right to exist as a state, plain and simple, and Ukraine’s right to exist as a people. Whoever you are, wherever you live, whatever you believe, that should make your blood run cold,” he said. “If nations can pursue their imperial ambitions without consequences, then we put at risk everything this very institution stands for. Everything.” Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is not attending the General Assembly, has said he sent his armed forces into Ukraine because of risks to his country’s security from what he considers a hostile government in Kyiv; to liberate Russians living in Ukraine — especially its eastern region of the Donbas — from what he views as the Ukrainian government’s oppression; and to restore what he considers to be Russia’s historical territorial claims on the country. Earlier this week, he warned that his nuclear-armed country will “certainly use all means available to us” if its territory is threatened and to defend the country and its people. Putin’s decree Wednesday about the mobilization was sparse on details but officials said as many as 300,000 reservists could be tapped. It was apparently an effort to seize momentum after the Ukrainian counteroffensive. But the first such call-up in Russia since World War II also brought the fighting home in a new way for Russians and risked fanning domestic anxiety and antipathy toward the war. Shortly after Putin’s announcement, flights out of the country rapidly filled up, and more than 1,000 people were arrested at rare antiwar demonstrations across the country. Zelenskky asserted that Moscow wants to spend the winter preparing its forces in Ukraine for a new offensive, or at least preparing fortifications while mobilizing more troops in the largest military conflict in Europe since World War II “Russia wants war. It’s true. But Russia will not be able to stop the course of history,” he said, declaring that “mankind and the international law are stronger” than what he called a “terrorist state.”Associated Press journalists Andrew Katell in New York and Josef Federman in Jerusalem contributed to this report. For more AP coverage of the U.N. General Assembly, visit https://apnews.com/hub/united-nations-general-assembly
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