MOSCOW, 21 September (BelTA) - The urgent debate of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) on the situation in Belarus held in Geneva on 18 September at the insistence of a group of western states is a gross interference in the affairs of a sovereign state, reads the commentary of the Information and Press Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry posted on the ministry's website.
“We note with regret that a group of countries led by the European Union imposed on the HRC another lopsided and politicized discussion, the goals of which were very far from the real concern for human rights,” the commentary reads. “This debate represents a blatant interference in the internal affairs of a sovereign state, incompatible with the principles of international law and the provisions of the UN Charter,” the ministry said.
“We view the debate and the adoption of the politically-driven draft resolution as an unacceptable attempt to influence, by gross political pressure, the results of the election in Belarus and its assessment in the international community. We assume that neither the UN Human Rights Council nor individual countries or groups have the right or authority to evaluate electoral processes in UN member states,” the Russian Foreign ministry said.
Western countries have again tried to use the HRC in order to delegitimize the authorities in a country, the Russian Foreign Ministry noted. Such actions undermine the reputation of the UN human rights dimension. "The HRC's resolution forced through by western countries in violation of the principles and norms of international law is legally negligible," the Russian Foreign Ministry concluded.
The Russian Foreign Ministry also noted that the Austrian representative presiding over the HRC allowed a gross violation of the rules of procedure. "We strongly condemn such actions, which are incompatible with the neutral status of the presidency in the UN collective bodies," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
