Russian Foreign Ministry Calls US Campaign to Exclude Moscow From UNHRC Theatre of Absurd

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Washington's campaign on the exclusion of Russia from the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is a "theatre of absurd" as the United States has been repeatedly violating basic values of humanitarian law and does not itself meet the criteria for the Council membership, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin said.

"In fact, the US, which positions itself as the engine of democracy and human rights, does not meet even the formal criteria for membership in the UN Human Rights Council," Vershinin said.

He noted that the US has ratified only 5 out of 12 core international human rights conventions and optional protocols. Despite the proclamation of gender equality, the US has yet to join the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). Among other documents, Vershinin recalled the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), the Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).

"How many times has Washington been the aggressor over the past 20 years, unleashing wars at will in every region of the world? Have Americans held any responsibility for numerous violations of human rights and international humanitarian law in Yugoslavia, Iraq, Libya, Syria?," the deputy minister said.

Vershinin called attempts of "the country with such a 'record' in the field of human rights" attempting to judge which members of the UN Human Rights Council are worthy of remaining in this body a "theatre of absurd."

On 24 February, Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine after the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Lugansk appealed for help in defending themselves against Ukrainian provocations. In response, the EU rolled out a comprehensive sanctions campaign against Moscow, which includes airspace closures and restrictive measures targeting numerous Russian officials and entities, media and financial institutions.