On
Ukraine and "Humanitarian
Crisis," UNSC
Meeting Scheduled
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
August 5 --
Despite events
in Eastern
Ukraine, the
UN Security
Council has
been quiet for
some times.
Now an
emergency
meeting on the
humanitarian
crisis has
been requested
for 5 pm on
August 5,
Russian Ambassador
Vitaly Churkin
told the press.
Churkin said
there is "some
resistance" from
the UK
Presidency of
the Council,
but that 5 pm
should be
doable.
Inner City
Press asked UK
president of
the Council
for August
Mark Lyall
Grant about
the
"resistance."
He said there
had been no
formal request
but Ambasador
Churkin had
spoken to him;
the question
was whether
there would be
a UN briefer
ready from the
Office for the
Coordination
of
Humanitarian
Affairs.
Apparently yes
-- by 1 pm, the
Ukraine
meeting was
added to the
Security
Council's
agenda for
this afternoon.
Watch this
site.
Back on July
30 when
Ukraine's
Permanent
Representative
to the UN
Yuriy Sergeyev
held a UN
press
conference on
July 30, Inner
City Press
asked him
about the
Human Right
Watch report
his government
is using Grad
rockets,
killing at
least 16
civilians
between July
12 and 21 near
Donetsk.
Sergeyev
responded
first about
the UN's (or
Ivan
Simonovic's)
report, then
emphasized
that Russian
media is
saying Ukraine
is using
ballistic
missiles.
Inner City
Press repeated
the question,
emphasizing it
concerns Human
Rights Watch's
report, not
the UN's, and
not Russian
media.
Sergeyev
provided
essentially
the same
answer.
Here
is the HRW
report, online.
Inner City
Press also
asked about
the status of
the
International
Monetary Fund
program, after
the downing of
MH17. Sergeyev
said Ukraine
has met with
the IMF's
Christine
Lagarde and
"will" get the
next tranche
of the program
in late
August.
But won't
there be an
Executive
Board meeting?
After
Russian
foreign
minister and
US Secretary
of State John
Kerry spoke by
phone on July
27, the US
State
Department
issued two
read-outs, or
a readout in
two stages.
The second, an
"additional
point" by a
Senior State
Department
Official, was
that Kerry
"underlined
our support
for a mutual
cease fire
verified by
the OSCE and
reaffirmed our
strong support
for the
international
investigation
to show the
facts of
MH17."
Inner City
Press on July
30 asked
Sergeyev for
Ukraine's
position on
this. Sergeyev
cited as
"pre-conditions"
the closing of
the border
with Russia,
and the
release of all
hostages.
Back on July
28 Inner City
Press asked
Russia's
Ambassador to
the UN Vitaly
Churkin about
this read-out:
does the US
support a
ceasefire?
“I
supposed he
said they
did,” Churkin
replied. “What
their message
is in private
to the
Ukrainians is
a different
story... There
was a phone
converation
between Vice
President
Biden and
President
Poroshenko
[then] they
went up
another stage
in escalating
the conflict
after that and
immediately.”
Procedurally,
Ukraine set
aside the
first question
at its press
conference
saying,
"Pamela,
traditionally
you open our
session."
Using this UN
Correspondents
Association
set-aside, Pam
Falk of CBS
asked about
rebels mining
the MH17 site.
Her UNCA
sidekick asked
about "Russian
propaganda."
And so it went
until, fifth,
the new Free
UN Coalition
for Access
asked about
HRW's report.
This is how
it's working,
with the UN's
Censorship
Alliance. In
this context,
the Free UN
Coalition for
Access is
against the
automatic
setting-aside
of questions.
Back
on July 25 at
the UN
Inner City
Press asked UN
deputy
spokesperson
Farhan Haq:
Inner
City Press: Is
there any UN
involvement in
trying to
bring about
this
deployment?
Does the
Secretary-General
believe that
such a
deployment
would go
through the
Security
Council?
Should go
through the
Security
Council?
Should the
consent of the
separatists be
sought to
avoid a
conflict?
What’s the
UN’s thinking
on this
deployment of
armed
individuals
into a
conflict zone?
Deputy
Spokesman Haq:
I believe that
this is an
issue that may
come up, among
the members of
the Security
Council in the
coming days,
so I’ll leave
it in their
hands.
Five
hours later
Security
Council member
Mark Lyall
Grant of the
UK said
“Its
early days,
the
negotiations
between The
Netherlands
and the
Ukrainian
government are
continuing, as
I understand
it, in Kyiv.
The
Australians
are obviously
involved as
well in terms
of negotiating
the bilateral
agreement.
When that
happens, I
think it is
quite likely
that the Dutch
government may
want to inform
the Security
Council of
that
agreement, and
I think it
also quite
likely that
the Security
Council will
want to take
note of that
agreement,
very possibly
in a
resolution. I
wouldn't
expect that to
be
controversial,
and that could
happen very
quickly after
agreements
have been
reached in
Kyiv.”
Meanwhile at
the
International
Monetary
Fund's July 24
embargoed
briefing,
Inner City
Press asked
IMF
Deputy
Spokesperson
William
Murray:
Inner
City Press:
"On Ukraine,
what is the
IMF's estimate
or thoughts on
the impact of
the downing in
Malaysia
Airlines
Flight MH17 in
Eastern
Ukraine, and
its impact, if
any, on the
IMF's program?
MR.
MURRAY: You
know, we're
concerned
about conflict
in the region
and a
statement we
issued the
other day
addresses that
issue.
But
what about
MH17 and its
aftermath? The
IMF did substantively
answer
Inner City
Press' Gaza
and Israel
question, here.
Watch this
site.
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