2024-09-26 02:18:24
Confrontation in the UN Security Council: The German Foreign Minister attacks Russia. Annalena Baerbock addresses Vladimir Putin directly in an explosive speech.
A diplomatic scandal occurred at a meeting of the UN Security Council in New York on Tuesday evening (local time). When it was the turn of German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock to give a speech, the Russian representative had already left the room. The Green politician then did not hold back with her criticism of the Russian side. She criticized Vladimir Putin’s regime in unusually harsh terms.
“You can perhaps fool yourself,” Baerbock said in reference to the Russian Federation, “the strongest man in your country is hiding behind young girls he has kidnapped. But you cannot lie to the whole world.” The allusion was a rather blunt attack on Russia’s dictator.
Baerbock was referring, among other things, to the allegations of alleged war crimes that the Kremlin ruler is accused of. In March 2023, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant against Putin and the Russian Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Lwowa-Belowa (39) because they are said to be responsible, among other things, for the abduction of thousands of children from Ukraine to Russia.
The German Foreign Minister made little effort to hide her displeasure. She also condemned the behavior of Vasily Nebenzia, the Russian UN envoy. “The ambassador of the Russian Federation always leaves the room after speaking here, we have seen that a few times now,” said the 43-year-old. In fact, Nebenzia had already left the meeting before it was Baerbock’s turn – as was the case at previous Security Council meetings. Among diplomats, this is considered an affront.
The accusations against the Russian regime are indeed serious. At least 19,000 children and young people are said to have been forcibly deported from Russia as part of the war of aggression against Ukraine, which violated international law. Some of the victims have now been able to return to Ukraine. They report that they were put in re-education camps, where they were subjected to Russian indoctrination and physical violence. Most of them were then brought to Russia, where they were placed in foster families.
Baerbock explicitly named the alleged atrocities in the Security Council, referring to the duration of the war in Ukraine. “Russia has been committing these crimes for 923 days now, children have been kidnapped and tortured for 923 days,” said the Foreign Minister in her speech. She also announced that she would continue to oppose Russian tyranny. “And we will not rest until these children are back with their families.”