Ukraine Presents Five Point Plan for Solving Russian Invasion to United Nations – In a speech to the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly, given virtually to his audience in New York on Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy laid out a plan to bring an end to the conflict with Russia and specifically accused the Kremlin of wanting to continue fighting.
Days later, on Friday, the Ukrainian president addressed the people of his country and laid out that same five-point plan.
What Zelenskyy Said to the United Nations
After the United Nations voted to allow Zelenskyy to give a virtual speech, the Ukrainian president used the opportunity to call for a special tribunal to punish Russia for the invasion.
“Ukraine demands punishment for trying to steal our territory,” the Ukrainian president said. “Punishment for the murders of thousands of people. Punishment for tortures and humiliations of women and men.”
To support the United Nations in establishing a tribunal, Zelenskyy said that he had created a series of “precise steps” to establish it, but did not provide details at the time. He did, however, promise that moving ahead with such a plan would be a signal to all future would-be aggressors that the United Nations would hold them responsible for making similar decisions.
Zelenskyy may have been referring to China’s continued threats to invade Taiwan – the most likely and comparable situation to Russia’s attempt to annex the Donbas region of Ukraine – though he may have also been speaking more generally.
In his address to the nation on Friday, Zelenskyy offered more details on his plan, specifying that Ukraine believes in punishment for the aggressor, the protection of life, the restoration of territorial integrity, security guarantees, and global support.
“Five points. The first: punishment for the aggressor. The second: protection of life, that is, all the necessary assistance to our state in defense. The third point: restoration of security and territorial integrity. The fourth point: security guarantees. And the fifth: the determination to achieve all this together with us – the determination of the world majority,” Zelenskyy said.
Soldiers, with team Deadpool, B Battery, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery Regiment, Division Artillery, 1st Armored Division, fire a M777 Howitzer, during the Two Gun Raid September 20 at Oro Grande Range Complex, N.M. 2-3 FA conducts the Two Gun Raid and table VI qualification annually. (U.S. Army Photo by Sgt. Michael Eaddy). This is similar to the artillery engaged in Ukraine.
It’s not the first time that Zelenskyy has called for a tribunal, having previously requested one in July during a conference hosted by the International Criminal Court. In the wake of Putin’s historic and escalatory speech on Wednesday morning, in which he effectively threatened a nuclear war, Zelenskyy’s words may now carry a little more weight.
Jack Buckby is a British author, counter-extremism researcher, and journalist based in New York. Reporting on the U.K., Europe, and the U.S., he works to analyze and understand left-wing and right-wing radicalization, and reports on Western governments’ approaches to the pressing issues of today. His books and research papers explore these themes and propose pragmatic solutions to our increasingly polarized society.
