Britain blocked a webcast featuring Russian Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova-Belova as she faces an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court.
Photo by Mikhail Metzel/Sputnik/EPA-EFE
April 5 (UPI) -- Britain on Tuesday blocked a webcast of an informal United Nations Security Council meeting led by Russia on the removal of Ukrainian children from the country.
The rare move to turn off the webcast was made after learning that Russia's commissioner for children's rights Maria Lvova-Belova, who is facing an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court over the removal of Ukrainian children, would address the meeting.
"[Lvova-Belova] should not be afforded a U.N. platform to spread disinformation," Britain's mission to the United Nations said. "If she wants to give an account of her actions, she can do so in The Hague."
Russia had said in a note that the purpose of the meeting was to dispel "a deliberate distorted narrative" that the children had been forced to leave Ukraine or abducted.
In March, the ICC accused Russian President Vladimir Putin and Lvova-Belova of being part of a scheme of forcibly deporting children from Ukraine to Russia since the start of the invasion of the country more than a year ago.
The authority of the court is not recognized by Russia and the United States and Moscow has rejected claims that it was abducting the children, saying the relocation was for their protection in a war zone and they were never forced against their will to depart Ukraine.
Russia, one of five members of the U.N. Security Council, serves as president of the body this month as part of its regular rotation done in alphabetical order. Russia last led the security council in February 2022, the month Moscow chose to invade Ukraine.
April 5 (UPI) -- Britain on Tuesday blocked a webcast of an informal United Nations Security Council meeting led by Russia on the removal of Ukrainian children from the country.
The rare move to turn off the webcast was made after learning that Russia's commissioner for children's rights Maria Lvova-Belova, who is facing an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court over the removal of Ukrainian children, would address the meeting.
"[Lvova-Belova] should not be afforded a U.N. platform to spread disinformation," Britain's mission to the United Nations said. "If she wants to give an account of her actions, she can do so in The Hague."
Russia had said in a note that the purpose of the meeting was to dispel "a deliberate distorted narrative" that the children had been forced to leave Ukraine or abducted.
In March, the ICC accused Russian President Vladimir Putin and Lvova-Belova of being part of a scheme of forcibly deporting children from Ukraine to Russia since the start of the invasion of the country more than a year ago.
The authority of the court is not recognized by Russia and the United States and Moscow has rejected claims that it was abducting the children, saying the relocation was for their protection in a war zone and they were never forced against their will to depart Ukraine.
Russia, one of five members of the U.N. Security Council, serves as president of the body this month as part of its regular rotation done in alphabetical order. Russia last led the security council in February 2022, the month Moscow chose to invade Ukraine.
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