Russia’s Ambassador to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya says Moscow has for years been warning about the soaring tensions in West Asia and that the ongoing crisis in the region results from longstanding “destructive” policies of the United States.
Nebenzya made the statement on Tuesday during an open debate in the United Nations Security Council on Israel’s brutal aggression on the besieged Gaza Strip that has claimed thousands of innocent Palestinian lives, including women and children, over the past 18 days.
“The tragic events in the region stem from Washington’s longstanding destructive role and policy of sabotaging the resolution of fundamental issues of the old conflict,” the Russian envoy said.
“Look at our statements on the Middle East; we, along with many others, have been warning for several years that the simmering tensions there are about to explode. Now this explosion has happened,” he added.
Nebenzya underlined that stability in the West Asia region hinges on a “fair settlement” of the long conflict between Palestinians and the Israeli regime, which he said would not be secured unless the UN resolutions on the Israeli occupation were implemented.
“The current crisis has once again demonstrated that regional stability will continue to be an unattainable goal without a fair settlement of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in conformity of the Security Council and General Assembly resolutions,” he said.
Last week, the United States vetoed a UN Security Council resolution that would have condemned retaliatory attacks by the Gaza-based Palestinian resistance movement Hamas against Israel while calling for a pause in the fighting to allow humanitarian assistance into the coastal strip.
The US was the sole vote against the resolution, with 12 members voting in favor and two others abstaining.
Israel launched the war on Gaza on October 7 after Hamas-led resistance groups launched Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, a surprise attack into the occupied territories in response to the occupying regime’s intensified crimes against the Palestinian people.
The Israeli attacks on Gaza have targeted places of gathering, including hospitals, schools, mosques and churches, displacing more than one million in the densely-populated region, which is home to more than 2 million people.
According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip has so far killed at least 5,795 people and left over 18,000 others wounded.
The Gaza Strip, which is one of the most densely-populated places in the world, has been deprived of water, food and other basic supplies due to Israel’s total blockade.
