The United States has accused Russia of launching at least nine North Korean-supplied missiles at Ukraine, while Moscow has countered by calling Washington a “direct accomplice” in the shooting down of a Russian military transport plane last month. The exchange of accusations occurred during a U.N. Security Council meeting on Ukraine, requested by Moscow. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine occurred nearly two years ago.
U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Robert Wood claimed that Russia had launched DPRK-supplied ballistic missiles against Ukraine on at least nine occasions. “Russia and the DPRK must be held accountable for their actions, which undermine long-standing obligations under UN Security Council resolutions,” he said.
Russia’s U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia and deputy U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Robert Wood traded the accusations at a U.N. Security Council meeting on Ukraine, requested by Moscow. Russia invaded neighboring Ukraine nearly two years ago.
In response to the accusations, Russia and North Korea have both denied the claims made by the United States, but they have expressed intentions to deepen their military relations. Russia has increased its ties with North Korea and other countries hostile to the United States, such as Iran, since the beginning of the conflict with Ukraine – a development that concerns the West.
On Jan. 24, a Russian Air Force Il-76 plummeted from the sky. Russia reported that all 74 people on board, including 65 Ukrainian soldiers who had been captured for an exchange with Russian prisoners of war, were killed, and they blamed Kyiv for shooting down the plane.
Russian ambassador Vassily Nebenzia stated, “We possess irrefutable evidence that a Patriot surface-to-air missile was used to carry out the strike, which leaves no doubt that Washington is a direct accomplice in this crime as well.” Russian investigators have claimed that Ukraine’s military downed the military transport plane with U.S.-made Patriot surface-to-air missiles.
Following this, Russia called for a council meeting after claiming that Ukraine killed at least 28 people by using Western-supplied rockets to strike a bakery and restaurant in Russian-controlled eastern Ukraine on Saturday.
Ukrainian U.N. diplomat Serhii Dvornyk accused Russia of misusing the Security Council “for disseminating fakes.” In response, Wood said the U.S. was unable to independently verify the information – blaming an absence of independent media reporting – but laments all civilian casualties. He added: “To be clear, Russia is the only aggressor in this war, and the only one that could end this war today.”
(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; additional reporting by Ronald Popeski; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
