Nations urge action on Russia-Ukraine war as Nigeria re-commits to int’l peacekeeping

Vice President Kashim Shettima will today press for a more representative and equitable global order at the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

Yesterday at the meeting, nations called on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to take concrete steps towards ending the Russia-Ukraine war, warning that the prolonged conflict “is undermining the credibility of the international system” and threatening global food security.

This was as the Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa (rtd), reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to restoring and expanding its role in international peacekeeping operations.

Shettima, who is representing President Bola Tinubu and leading Nigeria’s delegation to the high-level gathering, is scheduled to deliver Nigeria’s national statement before the UNGA today.

The address is expected to articulate Nigeria’s positions on major global challenges, including international peace and security, sustainable development, climate action, economic growth, multilateral cooperation and the reform of global institutions to give developing countries, particularly African nations, a stronger voice in international decision-making.

The 81st UNGA General Debate brings together heads of state and government and other senior representatives to deliberate on issues confronting the international community.

Shettima was among senior world leaders and representatives who attended the opening proceedings at the General Assembly Hall on Tuesday and a welcome breakfast hosted by UN Secretary-General António Guterres for heads of delegation and their spouses ahead of the formal commencement of the high-level engagements.

The VP arrived at the General Assembly Hall alongside Governors Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State and Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State.

Also in the Nigerian delegation are the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu; Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Senator Jimoh Ibrahim and other senior government officials.

Nigeria’s presentation is expected to focus on strengthening multilateralism, advancing national economic and development interests, deepening international partnerships and canvassing reforms of global institutions to reflect contemporary economic and demographic realities.

Ahead of the debate, Shettima had said Nigeria would approach its engagements from the standpoint of national interest while advancing President Tinubu’s advocacy for a global system in which developing countries have a stronger voice and fairer opportunities to prosper.

LIBERIA’S Director of the Cabinet, Dr Nathaniel Kwabo, at a UNSC meeting on the Russia-Ukraine war, said the council did not lack information about the conflict but lacked the political will to resolve it.
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Kwabo said the meeting was the fourth gathering on the conflict since July without a solution, while the death toll continued to rise, describing the situation as an indictment of the council’s credibility.
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He said Liberia, as a country that had survived war, understood the consequences when international mechanisms failed, stressing that its experience showed that “no war should remain eternal and no nation is beyond recovery.”

Calling for the restoration of sovereignty and peace, he noted that the conflict had gone beyond a regional war and was heading towards wider implications.

With Liberia administering one of the world’s largest merchant fleets of more than 5,000 commercial vessels globally, Kwabo said disruptions to merchant hubs and ports in the Black Sea posed a threat to international maritime law and global food security.
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A green carrier is not a warship,” he said, while insisting that Africa must not become a recruiting ground for a war it did not start and does not want.

‎Russia’s Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, however, blamed the European Union (EU) for the war’s continuation, arguing that the conflict could have been avoided if European countries had not violated previous agreements.

‎Lavrov said Russia remained prepared to negotiate a lasting peace but would not agree to a pause in what Moscow calls its “special military operation”.

‎MUSA, during an operational visit to the Defence Section of Nigeria’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York, said the Federal Government under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was committed to reinvigorating Nigeria’s participation in global peacekeeping and expanding its active role in international peace and security efforts.

A statement signed by Special Adviser (Media) to the Minister of Defence, Leah Katung-Babatunde, said Nigeria’s Defence Attaché to the UN, Brigadier General Edward Koleosho, briefed Musa on the section’s strategic activities and operational commitments.

The minister commended Koleosho and his team for their professionalism, loyalty and dedication to the ideals of the United Nations and the Nigerian Armed Forces.