Former Bush speechwriter Marc Thiessen stressed that there’s not much the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) could do to punish Russia since almost half of its permanent members – which hold the veto power- are complicit in crimes against humanity.
The five permanent members of the SC, who can all veto resolutions, are the United States, France, Russia, China, and the UK while several other rotating and elected members include the UAE, Ireland, India, Gabon, and Ghana.
Thiessen’s remarks came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy demanded action against Russia in a speech to the UNSC, citing grave war crimes.
He stressed that it’s difficult to watch footage of the civilian casualties, atrocities that are indeed prosecutable, but pointed out the UN’s power is neutered.
According to Thiessen, the UN is completely incapable of addressing these atrocities – genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes- for one simple reason: 40% of its voting members are actively engaged in genocide and crimes against humanity.
He mentioned China in that context, stressing that over a million Uyghurs there are in concentration camps, a treatment that the US has declared is genocide.
Speaking of the US, after “The Story” host mentioned the Biden administration’s careful language on war crimes, they referenced National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan who declined to label Russian assaults on civilians genocide, instead speaking of atrocities, war crimes, and systematic deprivation of life of the Ukrainian people.
Speaking of Russia’s treatment of Ukrainian civilians, Thiessen compared it to the 1995 Srebenica genocide in Yugoslavia.
The UN was spurred to form an international criminal tribunal to prosecute the culprits in those crimes, but in this case, as Thiessen pointed out, Russia and China could veto the creation of a Ukraine-centric forum.
He noted that, therefore, he supports Zelenskyy’s demands for the UNSC to kick Russia off the Security Council or to disband itself.
Be the first to comment