Russia will remain a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and nobody can change that, US officials have admitted, following Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s request to exclude Moscow from the UN’s most powerful body.
“[President Zelensky’s] frustration, which we share, that Russia is a permanent member of the UN Security Council. We don’t see that changing,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki stated at a briefing on Tuesday.
Earlier the same day, Zelensky addressed the Security Council, which had assembled to discuss the alleged civilian casualties in the Ukrainian town of Bucha. As the Russian army stands accused of committing war crimes, the Ukrainian leader called on the Security Council to either exclude Moscow or disband.
“You can do two things: exclude Russia as an aggressor and a source of war so that it cannot block decisions regarding its aggression or if there is no other option and alternative, then you all need to disband,” the Ukrainian president explained.
In response to Zelensky’s comments, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has offered the Ukrainian president a taste of his own medicine.