West, Russia clash at UN after incidents in Nato air space
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
The new US ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz speaking at the Security Council emergency meeting on Russia's incursions in Nato airspace in New York City on Sept 22.
PHOTO: AFP
Follow topic:
UNITED NATIONS, United States - Nato allies accused Russia at the United Nations on Sept 22 of violating the alliance’s air space in Estonia and Poland – actions that Britain said risked triggering an armed conflict.
Confronting Russia at a meeting of the United Nations Security Council, British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “Your reckless actions risk direct armed confrontation between Nato and Russia. Our alliance is defensive but be under no illusion we stand ready to defend Nato’s skies and Nato’s territory.”
“If we need to confront planes operating in Nato space without permission then we will do so,” she said.
Estonia said on Sept 19 that three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets had entered Estonian airspace
The Security Council convened on Sept 22 to discuss the issue. Nato consultations were due to take place on Sept 23. The incident occurred just over a week after more than 20 Russian drones entered Polish airspace
Ms Cooper’s comments were echoed by other Western ministers in the Security Council, including EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, who suggested the multiple incidents could not be considered an accident.
Ukraine’s foreign minister said such actions by Moscow should be met robustly and renewed an offer by Kyiv to integrate its air defences into those of neighbouring Western countries to counter the Russian front.
“A strong response means that a threat should not be escorted, neither for 12 minutes, nor for one minute. It should be neutralised,” said the minister, Andrii Sybiha.
The United States’ new envoy to the UN, Michael Waltz, making his first appearance since taking his post, said Moscow needed to defuse tensions, not exacerbate them.
“I want to take this first opportunity to repeat and to emphasise the United States and our allies will defend every inch of Nato territory,” Mr Waltz said. Russia’s deputy ambassador to the UN, Dmytry Polyanskiy, said there was no evidence backing their claims and accused European powers of levying baseless accusations.
“We won’t be partaking in this theater of the absurd,” he said. “When you decide that you want to engage in a serious discussion about European security, about the fate of our common continent, about how to make this continent prosperous and secure for everybody, we’ll be ready.” REUTERS
