Guterres shamefully meets with Putin and Lukashenko

In March 2023, the International Criminal Court issued a judgment arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin because he is “allegedly responsible for the war crime of unlawful deportation of population (children) and that of unlawful transfer of population (children) from occupied territories of Ukraine to the Russian Federation (under Article 8(2) )(a)(vii) and 8(2)(b)(viii) of the Rome Statute).’

Putin’s crimes neither begin nor end with that one instance; he deserves to be called like the late Senator John McCain called him ‘a murderer and a criminal’. It has been less than a year since Alexei Navalny died in one of Putin’s prisons.

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United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres has described Putin’s actions in his own country quite well opening speech at this year’s UN General Assembly:

The level of impunity in the world is politically indefensible and morally intolerable. Today, a growing number of governments and others believe they are entitled to a get-out-of-jail-free card. They can violate international law. They may violate the Charter of the United Nations. They can turn a blind eye to international human rights treaties or the decisions of international courts. They can turn their noses up at international humanitarian law. They can invade another country, destroy entire societies, or completely ignore the well-being of their own people. And nothing will happen.

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Abrams gives his views on US foreign policy, with a special focus on the Middle East and democracy and human rights issues.

That is Putin to the core. With these words in mind, and the ICC indictment still pending, it is simply indefensible that Guterres went out of his way to attend the BRIC meeting in Kazan, Russia, this past week. There he met Putin – see the photo – and other dignitaries such as Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus – whom he even hugged.

As for the last meeting, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrelius Landsbergis said this:

Guterres must admit he was wrong and take responsibility, both when he decided not to go to the Ukrainian peace summit in Switzerland and now, when he went to see the wanted war criminal Putin and crawled with him and his accomplice Lukashenko…. Guterres is no longer accepted as an honest broker, and if he decides to resign, we will certainly not be the ones to stop him from doing so.

Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė called Guterres’ behavior “pathetic” and added:

The United Nations has passed a number of resolutions in the General Assembly condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and such behavior is incomprehensible, to say the least.

As for Guterres and Putin: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky refused to receive him in Kiev after his meeting with Putin, and a Ukrainian official said: “He shook his (Putin) hand. He smiled. He was asked to further promote the BRICS summit. He was being used by them, and he seemed happy to be used.”

More about:

United Nations

Vladimir Putin

The war in Ukraine

Belarus

Guterres seems determined to eliminate any shred of legitimacy his office may possess. I noted a date of October 23rd X posts by him:

In our troubled world, hope is not enough. Hope requires action and multilateral solutions for peace, prosperity and a thriving planet. Hope requires all countries to work together as one. Hope needs the UN.

That was just before his meetings between Putin and Lukashenko. For Ukrainians and many others, hope requires a Secretary General who applies some principles and standards, and who avoids the terrible moral equivalence that Guterres has embraced. Unfortunately, his term runs until December 2026, but the Lithuanians are right: “If he decides to resign, we will certainly not be the ones to stop him from doing so.”