The UN says that expelling Russia from the Security Council "is not the right step" and calls for "diplomacy"

MADRID, 30 Sep. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Secretary General of the United Nations has said that a possible expulsion of Russia from the UN Security Council "is not the right step" in the face of the tensions arising from the invasion of Ukraine and has emphasized that "more diplomacy is needed ".

"I think that the secretary general (António Guterres) has said in the past (...) that expelling countries from a global forum is not really the right step when we are talking about the need for more diplomacy," said the spokesman for the Secretary General of the UN, Stéphane Dujarric.

Thus, he stressed that the UN bodies "will make the decisions they believe they should take in line with their procedures." "I think it's a reminder to the world of the dangerous situation we find ourselves in. It's a reminder of the need for all member states to respect international law," he argued.

Dujarric has insisted that Guterres "has conveyed his concerns to Russia" regarding procedures on the possible annexation of four Ukrainian regions -- the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Lugansk, as well as Jerson and Zaporiyia -- scheduled for the day of this same Friday.

Guterres himself warned Moscow on Thursday that this annexation "has no place in the modern world" and "cannot be accepted", since it contravenes both Ukraine's legal framework and international law. Thus, he has warned that the "supposed referendums" on which this step is based lack legitimacy.

In response, Russia's permanent mission to the UN has criticized Guterres, accusing him of "double standards" for a "direct attack on the fundamental right to self-determination expressed by the population of the Lugansk, Donestk, Kherson and Zaporizhia.