Russian presidency in UN Security Council ‘a bad joke’, says Ukraine’s foreign minister

The fact that Russia is to take over the presidency of the United Nations Security Council on April 1 is ‘a bad joke’, Ukraine’s minister for foreign affairs said on Thursday.

Kyiv earlier called on other member states to prevent Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, from presiding over the UN Security Council.

"Russia has usurped its seat; it’s waging a colonial war; its leader is a war criminal wanted by the ICC [International Criminal Court] for kidnapping children," Dmytro Kuleba wrote on Twitter.

"The world can’t be a safe place with Russia at UNSC," he added.

Russian UN Security Council presidency on April 1 is a bad joke. Russia has usurped its seat; it’s waging a colonial war; its leader is a war criminal wanted by the ICC for kidnapping children. The world can’t be a safe place with Russia at UNSC #BadRussianJoke #InsecurityCouncil

— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) March 30, 2023

The UN Security Council presidency, which rotates every month, serves to coordinate actions of the Council and decide policy disputes.

Since Russia is a permanent member of the only body whose decisions are binding in the UN system, it effectively blocks any punitive measures aimed at countering its aggression against Ukraine.

Last year, Ukraine initiated the process of stripping Russia of its permanent membership of the UN Security Council, claiming that its succession of the Soviet Union had been illegitimate.