As the Russian military keeps to mount rocket attacks that target Ukraine’s airports and military installations, and as its ground troops advance, reportedly firing missiles and long-range artillery, what can the United Nations do to stop the violence, protect civilians and work to achieve a diplomatic path to peace?
The UN Security Council is not able to act to restore international peace and security due to Russia’s veto of its resolution. But given the fact that Russia did not act in self-defense or with Security Council approval — and thus its military actions constitute illegal aggression — there is a step that the UN General Assembly could and should take immediately to promote a ceasefire, a withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine, and the pursuit of a diplomatic solution.
The Uniting for Peace resolution states that if the Security Council is unable or unwilling to act due to a lack of unanimity among its five permanent members, then the General Assembly can reopen the matter to restore international security and peace, including ordering the use force. The Security Council met on February 27. referred the matter of Ukraine to the General AssemblyUnder Uniting for Peace
Roots of the Current Conflict
To understand the full scope of the conflict in Ukraine, and the potential actions of the General Assembly to stop it, it is important to first consider the basic structuring realities of geopolitical dynamics that led to the conflict.
As I explained in my Truthout column of February 23 (the day before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine), some of the conflict’s roots can be traced to the expansion of the US-led North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) since the fall of the Soviet Union. The US promised the Soviet Union that it would not expand NATO to the east, but 11 former Soviet republics or members the Warsaw Pact have joined NATO. Russia regards NATO missiles in Poland (Romania, and the Baltics) as a threat for its national security. “If Russia faces such a threat as Ukraine’s admission to the North Atlantic Alliance, to NATO, then the threats to our country will increase many times,” Putin said, citing Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty “from which it is clear that all the countries of the alliance must fight on the side of one of their members if one Ally is considered as under attack.”
Russia proposed two treaties in December 2021 to provide Russian security assurances, guarantee that Ukraine will not join NATO, and protect the region against nuclear war. The treaties require the withdrawal from Eastern Europe of NATO forces and missiles, as well as limits on offensive weapons or intermediate-range missiles. But the United States and NATO rejected Russia’s treaty proposals, sent more forces to Eastern Europe and are shipping heavy weapons to Ukraine. NATO continued to promise a path to membership for Ukraine. The United States and Ukraine have also resisted the Minsk II Agreement, which Russia, Ukraine France, Germany and France agreed to in 2015 to end the war in Donbas.
Nevertheless, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine constitutes aggression prohibited by the United Nations Charter, and it is the responsibility of the UN General Assembly to take action in response.
Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine Constitutes Unlawful Aggression
Ukrainian health minister, Viktor Lyashko, saidOn February 26, 198 people, including three kids, were killed in the Russian invasion. He said that 1,115 people had been injured, including 33 children. The UN refugee agency reportedMore than half a billion people have fled Ukraine.
“The military actions taken by the Russian military against the territorial integrity of Ukraine” have led to a “grave threat to international peace and security,” the International Association of Democratic Lawyers said in a statement. “There is no legal justification under Article 51 of the UN Charter for the military actions Russia has taken against Ukraine. There being no basis to claim self-defense, the actions by the Russian military represents an illegal aggression against the territorial integrity of Ukraine.”
Article 2(4) of the UN Charter states, “All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations.”
Article 39 provides, “The Security Council shall determine the existence of any threat to the peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression and shall make recommendations, or decide what measures shall be taken in accordance with Articles 41 and 42, to maintain or restore international peace and security.”
An “act of aggression” is the use of armed force by a State against the sovereignty, territorial integrity or political independence of another State, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Charter. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine clearly falls into this category.
Russia rejects Security Council Resolution
On February 25, Albania, and the United States proposed a draft UN Security Council resolutionIt was supported by 81 UN member countries. It condemned Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and stated that it violated Article 2(4) of the UN Charter. Although the draft originally said that the UN Security Council would be acting under Chapter VII of the UN Charter — which would allow the Security Council to order forceful measures — it was changed to Chapter VI — authorizing non-forceful measures — in an attempt to secure China’s vote.
The draft resolution affirmed the Security Council’s assurance of Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. It condemned Russia’s military operation and exhorted Russia to immediately stop its use of force against Ukraine and completely withdraw its military forces from Ukraine. The draft resolution also deplored Russia’s recognition of the independence of Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics and said Russia should reverse that decision and work toward implementation of the Minsk agreements. The draft resolution also expressed concern over civilian casualties and called on humanitarian access and respect for international humanitarian law.
As expected, Russia vetoed this resolution. Eleven UN Security Council members voted for it, one (Russia), voted against it, while three (China, India, and the United Arab Emirates), abstained.
In explaining the Russian Federation’s veto, Russia’s delegate claimed that the draft resolution contravenes the interests of the Ukrainian people, arguing that the resolution omits reference to the shelling of the people of Donetsk and Luhansk by those who seized power in the 2014 coup, that Ukraine didn’t implement the Minsk agreements, and that neo-Nazis and militias are killing civilians. He also claimed that Russian troops are not bombing cities or targeting civilians and they can’t compete with the United States, which “is in no position to moralize” due to its numerous invasions.
Although Russia’s claims about Ukraine’s refusal to enforce the Minsk agreements and the proliferation of U.S. invasions are true, it is less clear whether those who took power after the 2014 coup are actually attacking Donetsk and Luhansk or that neo-Nazis in Ukraine are killing civilians.
The General Assembly Should Use “Uniting for Peace” to Stop Russia’s Aggression
The Security Council has referred the Ukraine situation to the General Assembly (GA) under GA resolution 377 (v) of 3 November 1950, called “Uniting for Peace.” Under Uniting for Peace, the General Assembly is empowered to take measures to restore international peace and security when the Security Council is unable or unwilling to do so. Uniting for Peace can be invoked by either seven members of Security Council or a majority General Assembly members. A Uniting for Peace resolution, which must be voted by two-thirds of the General Assembly members, is stronger than other General Assembly decisions.
Uniting for Peace says:
The Security Council fails to fulfill its primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and safety in cases where there is a threat to international peace and stability, breach of peace, or act or aggression. The General Assembly shall immediately consider the matter and make appropriate recommendations to Members for collective actions, including, in the case of a breach or act or aggression, the use of armed force if necessary to maintain or restore international security and peace.
The United States led the creation of the Uniting for Peace resolution, which was adopted in 1950. The U.S. could not obtain approval from the Security Council to conduct a U.S. military operation to invade North Korea after North Korea invaded South Korea. Dean Acheson, Secretary of State at the time, secured passage of the Uniting for Peace resolution.
The United States launched a preemptive campaign before George W. Bush invaded Iraq, 2003. This was to stop the General Assembly convening under Uniting for Peace to end the invasion. “The United States is putting a lot of pressure on many countries to resist,” Jan Kavan, then-president of the General Assembly, said at the time. “My gut feeling is if it is put to a vote, I think a majority would hold for a resolution that would be critical of military action.”
The Bush administration sent a communication to UN representatives around the world, stating, “Given the highly charged atmosphere, the United States would regard a General Assembly session on Iraq as unhelpful and as directed against the United States. Please know that this question as well as your position on it is important to the US.” The U.S. campaign to prevent the GA from convening under Uniting for Peace was successful.
In the case Ukraine, a Uniting for Peace resolution at the General Assembly should call for an urgent ceasefire, withdrawal from Russia of troops and weapons, and a diplomatic solution. NATO and the U.S. should remove heavy weapons from the Russian border and make a promise that Ukraine will not become a NATO member. Both sides must respect international humanitarian law, human rights law, and provide humanitarian assistance. To ensure the sovereignty and territorial integrity Ukraine, it is important to enforce Minsk II.
Russia may be complicit in war crimes against Ukraine
Russian leaders could face war crimes charges if they target civilians in addition to the Uniting for Peace resolution. These are the main considerations grave breaches of the Geneva Convention and therefore constitute war crimes: “wilfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health, and extensive destruction and appropriation of property, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly.”
Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions defines as grave breaches, and thus war crimes: “making the civilian population or individual civilians the object of attack” and “launching an indiscriminate attack affecting the civilian population or civilian objects in the knowledge that such attack will cause excessive loss of life, injury to civilians or damage to civilian objects.”
February 25, Amnesty International declared that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “has been marked by indiscriminate attacks on civilian areas and strikes on protected objects such as hospitals” that may constitute war crimes. Amnesty’s Crisis Evidence Lab analyzed digital evidence — including videos, photos and satellite imagery — of three attacks, in Vuhledar, Kharkiv and Uman, which were conducted early in the Russian invasion on February 24.
“The Russian military has shown a blatant disregard for civilian lives by using ballistic missiles and other explosive weapons with wide-area effects in densely populated areas,” said Agnès Callamard, Amnesty’s secretary general. “The Russian troops should immediately stop carrying out indiscriminate attacks in violation of the laws of war. The continuation of the use of ballistic missiles and other inaccurate explosive weapons causing civilian deaths and injuries is inexcusable.”
Additionally, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights said on February 25, “we are gravely concerned about developments” in Ukraine and “we are receiving increasing reports of civilian casualties.”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov denied that Russian forces were targeting civilians. “No strikes against civilian infrastructure are being carried out,” he said. “No strikes are being carried out on locations of Ukrainian army personnel in dormitories or other places not associated with military facilities.” However, Lavrov’s claims are belied by evidence amassed by Amnesty International and the UN high commissioner. By February 27, more than 350 civilians had been killed in Ukraine.
The International Criminal Court can punish war crimes, or individual countries can under the well-established principle that universal jurisdiction applies.
Unilateral coercive sanctions violate the UN Charter
The United States and other European countries have imposed illegal unilateral coercive measures — sanctions — on Russia. The Biden administration, along with close allies, imposed illegal unilateral coercive sanctions on Russia on February 26. said they would expel some Russian banksThe SWIFT financial messaging network, which will effectively ban them from international transactions. The move will “effectively block Russian exports and imports,” according to Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission. It does not allow Russia to be removed from SWIFT in a blanket move that would cut Russia off from a large portion of the global financial system.
President Joe Biden said the United States would limit Russia’s access to high-tech importsThis would affect their industrial and military capabilities.
Only the UN Security Council can order the use sanctions. This means that the United States and other nations cannot unilaterally impose sanctions on other countries without approval from the council. Article 41 of the charter says: “The Security Council may decide what measures not involving the use of armed force are to be employed to give effect to its decisions, and it may call upon the Members of the United Nations to apply such measures. These may include complete or partial interruption of economic relations and of rail, sea, air, postal, telegraphic, radio, and other means of communication, and the severance of diplomatic relations.”
Although the sanctions are meant to punish Russian leaders, they will also harm the Russian people who already suffer economic hardships. “Diplomacy, not sanctions, is where the solution lies,” said CODEPINK. “Sanctions on the entire Russian economy will only hurt ordinary Russians and will spread economic hardship to Europe and potentially, the global community—including here at home with energy prices rising ever higher than they are now.”
During this time, delegations from Russia as well as Ukraine are holding peace talksNear the Ukrainian-Belarusian frontier.
This situation is extremely dangerous as it could lead to a nuclear war between Russia, NATO countries, and other countries. For the first time in its history, NATO has activated and deployed NATO’s 40,000-troop Response Force. On February 25, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg declaredNATO would defend all its allies including Ukraine. In the meantime, Western officials are calling for a no-fly zone which, together with the deployment of NATO’s Response Force, could lead to a nuclear conflagration.
People all over the globe are mobilizing to demand peace in Ukraine. Protests have been taking place in many countries, including Russia, over the past week. Two thousand people from all over the world attended an emergency online meeting organized by an antiwar coalition. They also plan to hold an international day for peace in Ukraine on March 6.
