It was a brief appearance by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in front of the UN Security Council in New York. He had come to the committee with a considerable delay and then accused the West of direct interference in the war because of its arms deliveries and support for Kyiv. After the speech, which was attended by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba, Lavrov left the panel once more.
Blinken called for Russian President Vladimir Putin to be held accountable for the war of aggression. “The international order we are gathered here to uphold is being shredded before our eyes,” Blinken said in New York. “We cannot and will not allow Putin to get away with this.”
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for investigations into the “catalog of cruelty” in Russia’s war of aggression during the session on the fringes of the general debate. Guterres spoke of “extrajudicial executions, sexual violence, torture and other inhuman and degrading treatment of civilians and prisoners of war,” citing the UN Human Rights Commissioner.
Deaths following explosions in occupied territories
A day before the mock referendums in the occupied regions of Luhansk, Kherson, Donetsk and Zaporizhia, several explosions killed and injured, including civilians. Representatives of Ukraine and Russia blamed each other for this.
The information cannot be independently verified. In Donetsk, according to the mayor appointed there by Russia, six people were killed and six others injured in an explosion. The exiled mayor of Melitopol spoke of three dead soldiers following the shelling of the packed market square. It is unclear whether civilians are among the victims.
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said there was “no way” around the referendums on joining Russia in the four provinces. Internationally, this project is classified as contrary to international law. Turkey also condemned the announced sham referendums. Such “illegitimate facts” would not be recognized by the international community.
Observers see this as a reaction to the Ukrainian counter-offensive. Because of these referendums, the occupied territories might be declared Russian. That would make any advance by Ukraine more difficult.
Dispute over new EU sanctions
In a crisis meeting following the announcement of partial mobilization by Russian President Vladimir Putin, EU foreign ministers agreed on new sanctions once morest certain sectors and individuals, said EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. The EU will continue to support Ukraine with weapons.
This eighth package of sanctions might be formalized at the next meeting of EU foreign ministers in mid-October. However, there are already dissenting voices. At a party event, Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban called for the sanctions to be lifted. Austria’s Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP) also announced on Wednesday in the ZIB2 that Austria would say no if there were to be further steps in the “energy sector, especially in gas”.
How far away is peace?
Russia has now responded to Ukraine’s successful offensive in the east of the country with partial mobilization. However, military experts question whether this will quickly have military consequences. How will the war develop in the coming weeks and then in the winter? What are the consequences of partial mobilization for the mood in Russia? How far off is peace?
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