Statement of Russia at the UNGA72

Quotes/References to disarmament:

Nuclear Weapons/DPRK: “The confrontation around the DPRK is unfolding dangerously. We resolutely condemn the nuclear missile adventures of Pyongyang in violation of the UN Security Council resolutions. However, the buildup of military hysteria is not only dead-end but also deadly. It goes without saying that all the UN Security Council resolutions must be implemented. But all of them, along with sanctions, contain provisions on the need to resume talks. We launch an appeal to stop blocking these provisions. There is no alternative to the political and diplomatic methods of addressing the nuclear problem of the Korean Peninsula based on dialogue among all interested parties. We call on responsible members of international community to support the Russia-China roadmap contained in the joint statement of 4 July, made by the Foreign Ministries of Russia and China.”

Chemical Weapons: “The cases of use of chemical weapons in the region are a separate issue. All these cases must be investigated honestly and professionally, without any attempts to manipulate OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism.”

NPT: “Russia is committed to the goal of achieving a nuclear-weapon-free world. Under the
existing treaty regimes in the area of arms control and non-proliferation, the complete
elimination of nuclear weapons should become the final result of the process of
universal and total disarmament ensuring equal and indivisible security. The attempts to
'outlaw' the nuclear weapons without taking into account modern realities and turning a
blind eye to all the factors that impact the strategic stability today only make this
common goal more distant and undermine the consensus regimes of NPT and CTBT.”

ICTs: “We launch an appeal to say ‘no!’ to the militarization of information space. We must prevent the transformation of ICTs into an arena of politico-military confrontation and their use as an instrument of pressure, economic damage, and propaganda of ideas of terrorist and extremist ideology. [...] Russia has drafted a universal convention on countering cybercrime, including hacking. We propose to open its discussion as early as during the current session.”

Quotes/References to WPS:

Ukraine: “The West structured its policy according to the principle of "who's not with us is against us", having chosen the path of reckless eastward NATO expansion and provoking instability in the post-Soviet space and encouraging anti-Russian sentiments. This policy is precisely the root cause of the protracted conflict in South-Eastern Ukraine.”

Iraq/Syria: “Despite the fact that ISIL is pulling back in Syria and Iraq, considerable additional effort is required to stabilize the region. It should be recalled that it is necessary to fight not only ISIL, but also al-Nusra, the latter being tolerated for whatever reason by the U.S. coalition members.”

Syria: “The developments in Syria give grounds for cautious optimism. The 6th International Meeting on Syria in Astana, held on 14-15 September 2017, has finalized the work on the four de-escalation zones agreed upon with the participation of Russia, Iran, Turkey, the U.S., Jordan and the UN and supported by many other countries. These agreements have created conditions for further progress towards the implementation of Resolution 2254 on the basis of direct dialogue between the government and the opposition aimed at joining their efforts to eliminate as soon as possible the terrorist hotbed and restore peace all over the country, and its unity, and resolve acute humanitarian problems. [...] The most urgent task is to increase the supplies of humanitarian aid and demine the liberated territories. We are convinced that all those who sincerely wish peace to Syria and its people must join their efforts in this process under the leadership of the UN, and without any preconditions.”

Israel/Palestine: “The cases of use of chemical weapons in the region are a separate issue. All these cases must be investigated honestly and professionally, without any attempts to manipulate OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism.”