UN Human Rights Council Used to Promote Certain Political Interests – Official

The United Nations Human Rights Council is becoming an instrument of promoting the interests of only particular states, Deputy Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department of Humanitarian Cooperation and Human Rights Grigory Lukyantsev said.

UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik) – "Discussions [within UNHRC] more and more often turn into settling political scores," Lukyantsev said at the UN General Assembly, stressing that the UNHRC agenda is being used to promote the "interest of several countries and groups."

The Russian official stressed that the work of UNHRC should be focused on creating the conditions for a fair dialogue between all countries and on ensuring the respect for human rights throughout the world.

Russia missed election to the UNHRC in a close vote in October. The Human Rights Watch and about 80 other nongovernmental organizations issued a letter urging countries not to support Moscow’s bid due to Russia’s policy in Syria. The letter also urged countries against voting for Saudi Arabia because of its rights violations, but the UN General Assembly backed Riyadh’s candidacy.

The 47-member UNHRC is an intergovernmental body responsible for protecting human rights and addressing violations.