Russia Warns UN of Deteriorating Situation With Spread of Racist Ideas Globally

A Russian delegation to the United Nations has warned of global growth of racist ideologies around the world.

GENEVA (Sputnik) — Russia is warning the United Nations Human Rights Council of the worsening situation with the spread of racist ideas around the world, a Russian delegate told the 35rd session of the council.

"The tendency for radicals getting seats in the parliaments of a number of European countries, the increasing incidence of the persecution of migrants, refugees, and representatives of ethnic and religious minorities testify not to the persistence of the situation with the spread of racist ideas in the world, but to its deterioration," Natalia Zolotova said Monday.

Zolotova has mentioned the situation in Ukraine as an example of intentional playing to the radicals by the authorities. According to her, the desecration of the memorial to the victims of the Jewish ghetto in Chernivtsi, the legislative initiative of the Ukrainian parliament to tighten the law on state language and the creation of a special punitive body for the use of the Russian language is a case in point of ethnic intolerance and discrimination against national minorities elevated to the level of state policy.

"A blatant fact is the recent renaming of one of the avenues in Kiev in honor of Roman Shukhevych — not only an active Nazi collaborator during the World War II, but also an SS officer whose hands are steeped to the elbows with blood of murdered Jews, Poles, Russians and opponents of the Hitlerites in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia," the diplomat added.

In this regard, Moscow recommended UN Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance Mutuma Ruteere to draw attention to a wide range of issues mentioned in the resolution of the UN General Assembly on combating the heroism of Nazism and neo-Nazism.

The United Nations Human Rights Council is holding its 35th session from June 6 to 23. An updated report on the human rights situation in Ukraine is expected to be presented in the council on June 21.