While Americans tried to stay warm and enjoy their holidays, interesting news continued around the world. Reports from Moscow and Kyiv surfaced to the top. As Russian President Vladimir Putin stated he was ready for negotiations, Ukraine stated that Putin is not ready, and that Russia should be removed from the UN Security council. Neither are likely to occur.
Optimistically hoping Ukraine and their Western supplied weaponry were taking a toll, Putin’s statement to the Russian press on negotiations was soon seen by the world as more Russian propaganda. On Sunday, claiming Russia was ready for discussions, Putin stated that Kyiv and the West have refused to engage in talks. Initially, Putin was acting like he had a change of heart on Christmas Day. Alas, Christmas in Russia is celebrated on next year, on January 7.
As his discussion with reporters continued, Putin accused the West of trying to tear Russia apart. On Sunday, Putin answered questions stating, the policy of “our geopolitical opponents” is to “tear historical Russia apart.” Completely ignoring the fact that Russia invaded Ukraine, Putin said, “I believe that we are acting in the right direction, we are defending our national interests, the interests of our citizens, our people. And we have no other choice but to protect our citizens.” Earlier in the week, the Russian President used the word “war” for the first time to refer to his “special military operation” in Ukraine.
As Moscow continues to shut down Ukrainian power grids, leaving many in the cold and dark, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy adviser Mykhailo Podolyak replied, “Russia single-handedly attacked Ukraine and is killing citizens. There are no other ‘countries, motives, geopolitics. Russia doesn’t want negotiations, but tries to avoid responsibility,” and that “Putin needs to come back to reality.”
Will Russia be departing the UN Security Council?
Tired of the conflict, Ukraine called for Russia’s removal from the United Nations (UN) and the Security Council, where Moscow can veto any resolution as a permanent member of the Council. A statement from the Ukrainian foreign ministry said, “Ukraine calls on the member states of the UN…to deprive the Russian Federation of its status as a permanent member of the UN Security Council and to exclude it from the UN as a whole.”
The Ukrainian ministry stated Russia “illegally occupies the seat of the USSR in the UN Security Council.” According to the ministry, since the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991, “Russia is an usurper of the Soviet Union’s seat in the UN Security Council,” and “Three decades of its illegal presence in the UN have been marked by wars and seizures of other countries’ territories.”
Is it even possible to remove Russia from the Security Council? This action would require the UN General Assembly to vote based on the recommendation of the Security Council. Russia has veto power on the Security Council, and therefore the Council would not recommend Russia’s removal from the council. Thus, under the current assembly rules this action will not likely happen. Since the invasion, Western powers have pored through UN procedural rules to keep Russia from blocking Security Council meetings. With no success, the West has turned to the 193-member UN General Assembly, seeking the condemnation of Russia’s actions.
The U.S.
The U.S. does not believe Russians are serious about a real negotiation. As the war grinds on, tired and cold Ukrainians continue to request additional air defense weapons from the West. This past week’s historical visit to Washington by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was marked by the announcement of Patriot missiles transfer, but not in the quantities Ukraine desires. “Is it enough?” Zelensky asked of congress, this past Wednesday. Answering his own rhetorical question, “Honestly, not really.”
How long can the U.S. continue to support the flow of weapons and material to Ukraine? As wartime operations continue, analysts say weapons production is revealing significant gaps in the American and NATO defense industrial base. Some key weapons and munitions stocks may be nearing exhaustion, with production times for missiles varying from months to years.
