UK at UN Security Council: Russians stripping fridges for weapons
James Kariuki (Photo: EPA/JASON SZENES)

"Russia's military modernization has been set back. Now the Russian defense industry is taking apart refrigerators for parts," said James Kariuki, deputy ambassador of the United Kingdom to the United Nations, during a meeting of the UN Security Council.

Russia is procuring weapons from North Korea in violation of numerous resolutions, and by buying and using Iranian drones, both states are breaching a Security Council resolution, according to Kariuki

He stated that Russia has lost more than half of the territory it seized in Ukraine in February 2022, along with a fifth of the Black Sea Fleet and over $400 billion due to sanctions.

Kariuki said that the last time Russia's Foreign Minister spoke at the Security Council, he "spoke of protecting the rights of Russian speakers in Ukraine," but "the only threat to any civilian in Ukraine continues to come from Russia".

He also stated that the UK will continue to replenish Ukraine's air defense system with ammunition and remain unwavering in its "commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its borders, to ensuring Ukraine’s ability to defend itself".

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