Declaração do Representante Permanente, Embaixador Ronaldo Costa Filho, durante reunião do Conselho de Segurança sobre a Ucrânia (texto em inglês) - 27 de setembro de 2022

September 27^th 2022

Mr President,

I thank Under-Secretary General DiCarlo for her briefing. Brazil shares the concerns about the referenda in regions of Ukraine. In the current conditions, this is yet another step that leads to an escalation of the conflict. Far from expressing the will of the people of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, the referenda tend to make the prospect of peace negotiations even more distant.

The UN Charter and the International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recognize the inalienable right of all peoples to self-determination and to freely decide their political status. This is a fundamental principle of international law, which is the very basis of the legitimacy of states.

Many times before, especially in the context of decolonization, the holding of referenda was the means chosen for peoples to express their free will. Resolutions of this Council established the use of this instrument as a legitimate practice to decide on issues of sovereignty and territorial integrity. Its validity, however, depends on certain conditions. It is unreasonable to assume that populations in areas in conflict are able to freely express their will. International practice recommends that referenda on questions of sovereignty be conducted in a transparent manner, without restrictions on freedom of expression and with the possibility of monitoring by independent observers.

This does not seem to be the case for the aforementioned regions of Ukraine.

Brazil stands by the principles of respecting territorial integrity or political unity of sovereign and independent states.

Mr President,

We reiterate our call for an immediate ceasefire and the opening of peace negotiations. The Istanbul agreements in July and last week’s prisoner exchanges were positive signs that demonstrate the value of diplomacy in reducing the human suffering resulting from this conflict. These advances, while extremely relevant, are insufficient.

It is essential that the parties refrain from adopting measures that result in an escalation of hostilities, including in rhetorical terms. The moment calls for restraint and pragmatism.

We believe that this Council is primarily a forum for dialogue. So far, we have collectively failed to find creative solutions to the conflict. Dialogue, advocated by most members in their interventions over the past seven months, presupposes a willingness to listen. Perhaps we should ask ourselves how sensitive we are to the concerns of others - especially to the lives of those on the ground, which should come before any political considerations.

Thank you.