President Zelenskyy: Russia must face “just punishment”
Russia must expect “just punishment” for its invasion of Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said before the UN General Assembly in New York. In a pre-recorded video, the Ukrainian leader called for the establishment of a special court-martial and detailed allegations of war crimes by Russia.
He also presented a “peace formula” that included more military support and punishing Russia on the world stage. His speech received a standing ovation from many attendees at the session.
In his opening remarks, Zelenskyy accused Russia of causing “catastrophic turbulence” with its “illegal war”. He spoke on the same day that Russian President Vladimir Putin called up 300,000 military reservists for duty, a move that sparked rare protests on the streets of Russia.
Zelensky said the move showed his enemy did not take the peace talks seriously.
He condemned the recently announced plans in areas of his country occupied by Russia to hold so-called referendums on joining Russia, a plan denounced by Western leaders at the United Nations.
The word “punishment” appeared about 15 times in Mr. Zelensky’s speech and was the first of his five non-negotiable terms for peace.Russia faces the consequences of his aggression, he said, through further sanctions and the UN depriving Moscow of its powerful role as a permanent member of the Security Council.
He also called for Ukrainian lives to be protected and for the country’s internationally recognized borders to be respected. As the fourth and fifth conditions, he called for new security guarantees for Kyiv and the world to unite in denouncing Moscow’s armed aggression.
President Zelenskyy: Russia must face “just punishment”
Later Wednesday, the European Union’s foreign policy chief said EU countries had agreed to impose new sanctions on Russia. Josep Borrell told reporters that the new restrictions would target Russian individuals and economic sectors in the country.
Wearing his signature green t-shirt in his video, Mr. Zelensky thanked the 101 United Nations countries who voted to allow him to address the rally via video rather than in person.
