Russia seeks to completely monopolize Allied victory over Hitler, claiming they alone played a decisive role in this and suffered the greatest losses.
This was stated on Tuesday by the acting Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the UN, Khrystyna Hayovyshyn, who spoke at the General Assembly before the consensus adoption of a resolution on the 80th anniversary of the end of World War 2.
“The Russian Federation, which seeks to monopolize the memory of World War II, is waging war of aggression against Ukraine, repeating the very crimes it claims to oppose,” Hayovyshyn said.
According to the diplomat, Russia, just like the Nazis, is dehumanizing Ukrainians, “justifying mass violence under the false pretext of ‘denazification’”.
Against this background, the attempts of a state waging an unprovoked war of aggression to unite nations around the memory of World War 2 are the height of cynicism, the diplomat added.
“By emphasizing its exclusive role in the victory over Nazism, the Kremlin diverts attention from its crimes,” she noted.
Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine is not just a regional conflict, but a direct consequence of the failure of global deterrence mechanisms established after World War 2, Hayovyshyn stressed.
“Those who downplay Russia’s aggression ignore a grim reality: Moscow’s actions are a prelude to a wider global crisis,” she emphasized.
Hayovyshyn called for remembering the causes and preconditions that led to World War 2.
According to her, the catastrophe “was made possible by the civilized world’s hesitation to confront Nazism decisively” as it tried to appease the Nazis. Nazism might never have felt its power and impunity had there been no attempts to appease Hitler in Munich, she added.
The diplomat recalled that the war was caused, in particular, by the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, which she called out as “a shameful geopolitical disaster that divided spheres of influence in Europe between Nazi State and Soviet Union”.
“We can still prevent another such catastrophe. The only way is to secure a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace for Ukraine, Europe, and the entire world. Peace through strength. Strength in facing the aggressor and forcing it to peace. And not the vice-versa,” said Hayovyshyn.
The UN General Assembly has adopted by consensus a resolution “Eightieth Anniversary of the End of World War 2”, co-authored by nations including Russia, Belarus, China, Serbia, and Venezuela.
The document contains three points and proposes, in particular, that all states, UN structures, non-governmental organizations, and individuals celebrate the end of World War 2 as a tribute to the memory of its victims.
As Ukrinform reported earlier, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk on Monday expressed deep concern about the fundamental change in direction of United States policy.
Source: Ukraine at UN: Kremlin seeks to monopolize right to WW2 victory
