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Annalena Baerbock in front of the UN
Photo: TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP
Almost a year after the beginning of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has demanded a clear signal from the UN states for an end to the war.
"Today, each of us has to make a decision: stand in isolation with the oppressor - or stand together for peace," said the Green politician in her speech at the UN General Assembly in New York before a planned vote.
The plan for peace is laid out in the UN charter, Baerbock continued: »Every one of us here today has the opportunity to contribute to this peace plan.
By telling the aggressor that he has to stop.« The vote on the resolution presented by Ukraine must make it clear: »It is not peace when an aggressor tells his victim to simply give up«.
And that there is no peace when an aggressor is rewarded for his “ruthless violence”.
"Russia must return to the UN Charter."
Baerbock rejected criticism of German and Western arms deliveries to Ukraine: The federal government would much rather invest time and money in education, social justice and the fight against the climate crisis, she said.
They don't want this war and didn't choose it.
But: »If Russia stops fighting, this war will end.
If Ukraine stops fighting, it will be the end of Ukraine.” The suffering from the conflict – kidnappings, rapes and torture – would continue.
And the world's "gaping wounds" caused by hunger, inflation and energy shortages could not heal.
Resolution calls for “just and lasting peace”
In the evening of Central European time, the UN General Assembly is to vote on a resolution that Germany has introduced together with more than 50 countries.
In the document, the countries demand that Russia stop its war of aggression and that Moscow's troops withdraw from Ukraine.
It says that a "comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine" is needed.
The draft reaffirms a number of positions previously adopted by the body, such as Ukraine's territorial integrity.
Kiev and its supporters want to build on similar voting results from last year with more than 140 "yes" votes - this should also counteract the impression that there is war weariness in parts of the world and crumbling support for Kiev.
"We are doing all our diplomatic efforts to ensure that the world raises its voice loud and clear today, so that it is finally heard in Moscow," Baerbock wrote on Twitter before she left for the meeting at UN headquarters.
»The peace plan is on the table in New York, it is the UN charter.«
For a year now, Ukraine has been completely innocently involved in a war of aggression by Russia.
“Nobody wants this war but Russia.
We want peace, Ukraine, the world needs peace.«
kko/dpa
