UNITED NATIONS SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON THE CHARTER OF THE UNITED NATIONS AND ON THE STRENGTHENING OF THE ROLE OF THE ORGANIZATION: Working Group meeting on the Peaceful Settlement of Disputes
24 February 2022
Statement by Ms Alexandra Hutchison, First Secretary and Legal Adviser, Permanent Mission of Australia to the United Nations
It is a sad irony that we meet today to discuss the peaceful settlement of disputes, having earlier this week discussed the maintenance of international peace and security.
Australia condemns in the strongest possible terms Russia’s unprovoked and unacceptable aggression against Ukraine.
As the Australian Prime Minister has said: “There is no pretext, there is no provocation, there is no just cause that Russia is seeking to pursue… We denounce what are unilateral hostile actions in Ukraine. Russia is flagrantly breaching international law, and the UN Charter. Russia has chosen war.”
We strongly reject any assertions or excuses that Russia’s actions are motivated by humanitarian concerns.
As Australia’s Foreign Minister has said: “The assertion by President Putin of Russian soldiers acting as peacekeepers is… an obscene perversion of the noble and vital role that generations of peacekeepers have played across the world”. Russia’s actions are “a wholesale breach of international law”. They are “reckless and destructive”.
Russia is violating its obligations under the UN Charter, including most obviously to refrain from using force against another State.
Australia welcomes the significant efforts that have been undertaken by our close partners, including the United States, the European Union and NATO, to urge a diplomatic solution. Unfortunately these efforts have failed.
We are determined to work with responsible nations worldwide to ensure Russia’s actions incur the high cost they deserve.
The Australian Government is imposing a new suite of sanctions against Russia. This is the beginning of a process and we will escalate our sanctions response proportionate to Russia’s actions.
Australia has been and will always be a steadfast supporter of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
We stand with the international community to condemn unequivocally Russia’s aggressive actions.