This year’s 70th session of the UN General Assembly will be remembered by many for the speeches given by the presidents of the US and Russia, which demonstrated their opposite visions upon solving of the world’s problems, including the Syrian crisis and the Russian aggression in Donbas.
In this context, the world’s media paid less attention to speeches of other countries’ leaders. However, it is certain that Ukrainian audience is interested in the activities of the Ukrainian delegation in New York, as well as in the potential results of those activities.
In that regard, it should be noted that Petro Poroshenko, President of Ukraine, has demonstrated remarkable enterprise. Apart from numerous bilateral meetings against the backdrop of the General Assembly, he spoke from the tribune of the United Nations twice. The first time had been on Sunday evening at the Millennium Summit regarding the adoption of Sustainable Development in the framework of the UN. And the second time had been on Tuesday evening at the General Debate of the 70th session of the United Nations. In addition, on Monday the president was given another opportunity to speak at the summit on peacemaking through Ukraine’s contribution in this area.
Among these three speeches, the most indicative of the president’s program was the one on the Tuesday night. In his nearly half-hour speech, which was repeatedly interrupted by applause, and which the Russian delegation chose not to listen entirely, Poroshenko took the prime opportunity to criticize Russian aggression, and then to offer a range of initiatives.
In particular, he noted that Ukraine, as one of the UN founders in 1945, has 70 years afterwards become a victim of aggression by “the Russian Federation, a neighbor, former strategic partner that legally pledged to support the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.”
Poroshenko has called the aggression against Ukraine a moral test for the whole civilized world and urged for a review of the veto mechanism, which has been abused by Russia in order to block certain issues concerning Ukraine that became the victim of Russian aggression. “The abuse of the right to veto, its usage as a license to kill is totally unacceptable... Ukraine remains strongly in favor of limiting the right to veto,” he said. According to the Ukrainian president, the establishment of an international peacekeeping force which would have brought peace, stabilized the situation, and stopped the bloodshed had also been put to a halt because of the fears of the Russian veto.
He also addressed the General Assembly with a proposal to strongly condemn the full-scale information wars and propaganda campaigns, and offered to discuss ways of counteracting them. He said the UN should also launch a perpetual campaign of international pressure on the Russian authorities in order to prompt the immediate release of all Ukrainian citizens held as hostage by them.
One of the main initiatives of the president, which he announced from the UN tribune, was the establishment of the International Day for Remembrance of the Victims of Terrorism. “I really believe that one of the main aspects of the fight against terrorism is preserving the memory of the victims. And in this regard I propose the 70th Session of the General Assembly to consider the possibility of establishing the International Day for Remembrance of the Victims of Terrorist Attacks,” he said.
Another his initiative includes a special session of the General Assembly to be held in April 2016 dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the Chornobyl disaster.
What are the results that should be expected by Ukraine following Petro Poroshenko’s participation in the 70th session of the UN General Assembly?
Alexander MOTYL, Professor of Political Science at Rutgers University, US:
“Many analysts expected that Vladimir Putin will announce a major new Russian initiative. Instead, his speech repeated the standard hackneyed statements about the Kremlin’s commitment to international norms, the responsibility of the West for all the troubles of the world, and so on. His proposal to create an international coalition against terrorism will not be accepted by the West, especially due to his criticism of the latter. In this sense, Putin lost here since he wasted an opportunity to demonstrate a constructive approach and become a true global player. Ultimately, it is Russia that is in international isolation. Instead of behaving as a world statesman, Putin behaved like a whiner and loser.
“Barack Obama’s speech was superb. He once again made known his long-held view that ideals should shape international politics as he criticized Putin on almost every important point while emphasizing the US’s commitment to helping Ukraine. It is obvious that Obama does not intend to cooperate with Putin and help him stop being a loser.
“Petro Poroshenko seized the initiative and sharply criticized Putin and Russia for violating international law, aggressive behavior towards their neighbors, promoting terrorism and so on. He spoke well, presenting Ukraine as the injured victim and Russia as the aggressive torturer in this crisis. He spoke as a winner.”
