Churkin
on Russia's UN
Veto, Its Use
in Zimbabwe
&
Myanmar,
"Minority
Defense"
By
Matthew
Russell Lee,
Exclusive
UNITED
NATIONS,
February 1 --
With Syria
the main topic
in the UN
Security
Council,
many have focused on
Russia and its
veto, when it
would use
it and why.
Inner
City Press
learned last
week that in a
closed door
meeting last
month on
Security
Council reform
Russia's
Permanent
Representative
Vitaly
Churkin said
that his
country didn't
win UN veto
power in "a
lottery, but
as a result of
battle."
Wednesday
Inner
City Press
asked Churkin
about his
statement, and
push back by
an
African
country that
they too had
suffered in
World War Two.
"I'm
sure they
did," Churkin
said, "in
different
ways."
Churkin
paused,
then
continued, "I
hope people
understand,
some of them
argue
with all due
respect
without
realizing the
consequences
for their own
national
interest for
stripping us
of the veto
powers. When
they find
themselves in
a hot spot
without anyone
being able to
exercise the
veto, they
will come to
regret it.
Things
happen."
Asked
about
previous
vetoes,
Churkin told
Inner City
Press that
since he's
been
at the UN,
Russia has
cast only four
vetoes.
"Two
had
really nothing
to do with our
national
interest,"
Churkin said.
"On Myanmar
ASEAN was
saying it was
wrong. On
Zimbabwe, the
African Union
was saying it
was wrong. I
had Ambassador
[Dumisani]
Kumalo next to
me saying that
if it was
adopted he'd
have thousands
of refugees.
So we just
vetoed it." He
added, "Now
Myanmar
is progressing
peacefully."
He
did not go
into
detail on the
other two
vetoes: the
end the UN
observer
mission in
Abkhazia, and
on the last
Syria
resolution --
and next the
next one.
(c) UN Photo
Churkin and
South Africa's
Sangqu, Kumalo
and World War
Two not shown
Instead,
Churkin paused
before issuing
a sort of
aphorism on
the veto,
calling it
"about the
protection of
the rights of
minorities in
the United
Nations."
There
are sure
to be many
views of
Churkin's
statements.
But for now
one can say:
while the work
of some in the
Council and in
their capitals
seems
directed at
guilting
Russia into
not using its
veto, Russia
can
articulate a
counter-narrative,
of "heroic
vetoing" to
"protect the
rights of
minorities."
Alawites might
be
minorities --
but Assad is
decidedly in a
"hot spot."
Watch
this site.
Footnote:
as simply one
example, France
during this
time frame
abstained from
a Security
Council
resolution
purely to
protect the
commecial
interest of
one of its
banks. We'll
have more on
this.
, 
