Annalena Baerbock and G7 Colleagues Warn Russia

In the northern German city of Münster, the Federal Republic's Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and her G7 counterparts warned Russia against escalating its war of aggression against Ukraine further. They condemned Moscow's attack again and had things to say about Iran too.

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Berlin, November 4th, 2022 (The Berlin Spectator) — In Münster, the Foreign Ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America, and the High Representative of the European Union, underlined their strong sense of unity and "unshakable commitment to upholding the rules-based international order and to protect the rights of all, including the most vulnerable", as it says in their statement.

Peaceful Cooperation

All members of the United Nations needed to refrain from the threat or use of force against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of any state in accordance with the United Nations Charter, the Foreign Ministers said. "Violations of universally agreed and legally binding fundamental principles such as peaceful cooperation, sovereignty, self-determination, and territorial integrity are unacceptable." They stated they were clear in their "commitment to hold those responsible for egregious violations of such basic principles of international law to account."

The following is their statement on Russia's war against Ukraine:

"We again call on Russia to immediately stop its war of aggression against Ukraine and withdraw all of its forces and military equipment. Together with the Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba we condemn Russia’s recent escalation, including its attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, in particular energy and water facilities, across Ukraine using missiles and Iranian drones and trainers. Through these attacks, Russia is trying to terrorize the civilian population. Indiscriminate attacks against civilian population and infrastructure constitute war crimes and we reiterate our determination to ensure full accountability for these and crimes against humanity. We also condemn the violation of Moldovan airspace.

Russia’s irresponsible nuclear rhetoric is unacceptable. Any use of chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons by Russia would be met with severe consequences. We also reject Russia’s false claims that Ukraine is preparing a radiological “dirty bomb”. The inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed that these allegations are baseless, and we commend Ukraine for its transparency.

We also condemn Russia’s continued seizure and militarization of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant, the abduction and reported abuse of Ukrainian personnel, and the willful destabilization of its operations. We support the IAEA’s efforts to establish a Safety and Security Zone.

We will continue to impose economic costs on Russia and on other countries, individuals or entities providing military support for Moscow’s war of aggression, as several of us have already done regarding Iran’s provision of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) to Russia.

We reiterate our call for the Belarusian authorities to stop enabling Russia’s war of aggression, including permitting Russia’s armed forces to use Belarusian territory to launch missiles targeting Ukraine. If the Belarusian authorities more directly involve Belarus in Russia’s war, the G7 will impose overwhelming additional costs on the regime.

We reiterate our unwavering commitment to continue providing the financial, humanitarian, defense, political, technical, and legal support Ukraine needs to alleviate the suffering of its people and to uphold its sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders. We salute the bravery and resilience of the Ukrainian people in the face of Russia’s unprovoked aggression, and we are committed to helping Ukraine meet its winter preparedness needs.

Today we establish a G7 coordination mechanism to help Ukraine repair, restore and defend its critical energy and water infrastructure. We look forward to the 13 December international conference in Paris aimed at supporting Ukraine's civilian resilience, organized by France and Ukraine. We also welcome the outcomes of the 25 October International Experts Conference in Berlin and remain committed to contribute to the recovery, reconstruction and modernization of Ukraine. We will stand firmly with Ukraine for as long as it takes.

We reaffirm our support for press freedom and access to reliable information globally. We will continue to counter Russia’s disinformation, including false allegations concerning bioweapons. We are strengthening the G7 Rapid Response Mechanism’s capacity for a coordinated response.

Recalling the 11 October G7 Leaders’ statement, we welcome President Zelenskyy’s readiness for a just peace based on respect for Ukraine’s territorial integrity, sovereignty, and its legitimate right to defend itself from aggression. Russia’s calls for negotiations are not credible when it continues to escalate the war and issue new threats and disinformation."

Global consequences of Russia’s war against Ukraine:

"Russia’s war of aggression is a driver of the most severe global food and energy crises in recent history. We condemn Russia’s attempts to leverage energy and food exports as a tool of geopolitical coercion. The resulting turmoil is hitting vulnerable countries and communities around the world particularly hard, exacerbating an already dire situation caused by the climate crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, and existing conflicts. We will continue to coordinate among the G7 and beyond to help mitigate the consequences of Russia’s war of aggression on global economic stability and international food, nutrition and energy security by both addressing acute needs and making medium to long term investments in resilient systems.

We strongly support the United Nations Secretary-General’s call for the extension of the Black Sea Grain Initiative (BSGI), which has reduced global food prices. We urge Russia to heed the Secretary-General’s call. The G7 is also leading other vital international initiatives, including the Global Alliance for Food Security (GAFS) and the EU-led Solidarity Lanes. We are also accelerating our work to get fertilizers to the most vulnerable. We commit to promote more sustainable, resilient, and inclusive food systems globally and call on the G20 to support these efforts.

We continue to encourage oil-producing countries to increase production, which will decrease volatility in energy markets. We will finalize implementation of the price cap on seaborne Russian oil in the coming weeks."

This is the Foreign Ministers' statement on Iran:

"We, the G7 members, express our support for the fundamental aspiration of the people of Iran for a future where human security and their universal human rights are respected and protected. We condemn the violent death of the young Iranian woman “Jina” Mahsa Amini after her arrest by Iran’s so called “morality police.” We further condemn the brutal and disproportionate use of force against peaceful protesters and children. We urge Iranian authorities to honor their international obligations under international law, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

We advocate the right of all Iranians to access information, and we deplore the Iranian government’s erosion of civil space, and independent journalism, its targeting of human rights defenders, including by shutting down the internet and social media. We urge the Iranian authorities to treat women as equal, respecting the universal rights provided to them under the relevant international human rights treaties. We also call on the Iranian authorities to release unjustly detained prisoners, including recently arrested protesters, children, journalists and human rights defenders, and ensure accountability for perpetrators of human rights violations and abuses. We will continue to use all available diplomatic measures to hold the Iranian authorities to account. We call on Iran to allow access to the country for relevant UN Human Rights Special Procedures mandate holders.

We strongly reject Iran’s practice of unfairly detaining dual and foreign citizens and call upon Iran to end the repellent practice of such unjust detentions in hopes of political gain.

We strongly support international efforts to hold Iran to account for its downing of PS752, which killed 176 innocent civilians. We demand that Iran fulfill its international legal obligations without delay.

We strongly condemn Iran’s continued destabilizing activities in and around the Middle East. These include Iran’s activities with both ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), i.e. drones, and transfers of such advanced weaponry to state and non-state actors. Such proliferation is destabilizing for the region and escalates already high tensions. We urge Iran to cease its support to violent state and non-state actors and proxy groups and fully abide by all relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions (UNSCRs), including UNSCR 2231. We also support efforts at the United Nations to hold Russia and Iran accountable for their blatant violations of UNSCR 2231.

We reiterate our clear determination that Iran must never develop a nuclear weapon. The G7 will continue working together, and with other international partners, to address Iran’s nuclear escalation and insufficient cooperation with the IAEA regarding its Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) safeguards agreement. We remain deeply concerned by the unabated expansion of Iran’s nuclear program, which has no credible civilian justification. We call on Iran to change course and fulfill its legal obligations and political commitments in the field of nuclear non-proliferation without further delay. We note that despite many months of intense negotiations on a return to the JCPoA, Iran has not made the necessary decisions."